


Loving You is A Bloodsport

by sgafirenity



Series: Loving You is a Bloodsport [1]
Category: The 100 (TV)
Genre: Adventure, F/F, Humor, Mystery, Romance, friendships
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-01-25
Updated: 2018-05-05
Packaged: 2018-05-16 03:47:23
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 27
Words: 149,318
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/5812597
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/sgafirenity/pseuds/sgafirenity
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>The mountain men have been defeated, and now Clarke and Lexa must deal with the repercussions of letting a missile hit Tondc. Lexa must deal with the fact that she might lose Clarke in something she has no control over. They also fight the feelings they both feel for each waiting for Clarke to be "ready".</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Part 1

**Author's Note:**

> Disclaimer: This is a work of fiction, I do not own The 100 or the characters associated with it. 
> 
> This fanfic is currently being posted on Fanfiction.net. I've decided to also post it on this website as well because from being apart of Tumblr, I think the majority of Clarke/Lexa fans are on this site more so than Fanfiction.net. If you are already reading it there, know that it will still be posted there. I'll just be posting it here too. 
> 
> EDIT: Just for your info, I posted this fanfic on Fanfiction.net on March 1, 2015, after 2x14 but before 2x15 so I wrote this with no knowledge of the season 2 finale. Everything that occurred in 2x15/2x16 have not occurred in this fanfic. I ran with the idea that their original plan worked. Lexa did not betray Clarke and Clarke did not kill everyone in Mount Weather. 
> 
> Italics = thought  
> “Italics within quotation” = Trigedasleng (Grounder’s Language)  
> “Non-Italicized words within quotation” = English 
> 
> I hope you enjoy.

Chapter 1

 

For decades, the grounders lived in fear of the mountain men, of their power to melt them with mist or their abilities to kidnap their warriors and turn them into reapers. They had learned to live their lives one day at a time because they didn’t know when their lives would end. Would they get caught in a cloud of yellow mist and be melted away or would they get caught and turned into a reaper to then feed on the people they loved? That was their way. They found their own way to live, to make sure that if they lost someone it didn’t affect them.

 

Death has no cost, life has no worth. It’s how they learned to live their lives.

 

When Clarke came along with the idea to join forces, to fight the mountain men and stop this terror they had all been fighting. Of course the commander jumped at that chance. She wanted to see her people free. Using the technology of the sky people and the grounders knowledge of this land, they were able to defeat the mountain. Kill the president Cage and free both of their people in the mountain. It was everything they all wanted.

 

Lexa was off in the distance helping her warriors to get their dead up on carriages to give them a proper warrior’s ceremony. While Clarke was outside the mountain doors helping bandage up some of the warriors that had sustained injuries in the war when a familiar face came running out of the big steel door.

 

“Clarke!”

 

The voice echoed from a distance as Clarke stood up from her work and looked to the voice that had called her. That familiar voice she hadn’t heard from in what seemed like a while. “Bellamy…” She was able to get out just as he came rushing into her and pulled her up into a big hug. “You made it.”

 

“Thanks to you,” He pulled back to look her over making sure she hadn’t injured herself too bad. “It was a close call back there but if you guys hadn’t come when you did I might not be standing here right now.”

 

Clarke couldn’t help the smile that spread across her face, “I’m glad you’re okay. I was starting to worry that you didn’t make it. Jasper and Monty had come out earlier not mentioning much of you.”

 

“Yeah well, I’m sure Jasper wanted to make sure that everyone kept that one wing sealed off so that those people in the mountain that were against the treatments could be saved and not killed. If it wasn’t for them, our people and even myself might not be here now.” He admitted knowing just how important Maya was to Jasper.

 

Clarke nodded, “Yes, I’ve made it clear to the remaining grounders and guards that they leave that wing off limits until my mom and the med team can get here. So they can determine a course of action for those that can’t circulate the radiation like we can. Hopefully they will be able to find a solution.” Finally she took in his outfit. “Are you wearing a guard uniform?”

 

He chuckled, “Yeah, when Maya cut me loose I was able to get a hold of a guard’s uniform. That’s how I was able to move so freely. That is until they found that I was not one of their own. Then things got a little tricky.”

 

“Well you were able to survive and that’s what counts.” She pointed out as she placed a hand on her shoulder in congratulations. “We could really use your help in the rebuilding of Tondc.” She stated as she turned to walk toward another injured grounder. “That is if Lexa is planning on rebuilding it or not.”

 

Bellamy looked confused and grabbed Clarke’s arm to turn her back to him, “What do you mean rebuild Tondc? You weren’t able to get there in time?” He looked around and could see the commander in the distance. “The grounder’s commander is alive.” He pointed toward Lexa in the distance. “I know she had to be there, if you didn’t get there than how is she alive?”

 

A look of realization came over Clarke as it occurred to her that Bellamy wouldn’t have known about Tondc unless Raven told him and from this reaction, she’s guessing Raven didn’t say anything. “Uh… I did get there in time.”

 

His eyes go wide, “Then why did you let it get bombed?”

 

There were a few grounders and even guards around them that overhead this very sentence. Whispers began to circle that Clarke of the sky people knew about the bomb and didn’t say anything to anyone.

 

“We didn’t want to evacuate the village just in case it got back to Mount Weather. Bellamy, if they knew we knew there was a missile coming they would have known we had a spy on the inside.” She tried to explain. “They would have known about you.” He was fuming; Clarke could see it in his eyes. The way his jaw tightened to the fire forming in his pupils.

 

He exhaled rather loudly through his nose, “We, huh? This was her. Wasn’t it?” His face said it all, Bellamy was pissed.

 

Before Clarke could do anything he was off on a mission toward the commander. At first Clarke thought he was just going off to cool off until she noticed the direction he was heading. Then she knew she needed to get there quick before things went too far and they found themselves in a whole new war. One Clarke would have difficulties choosing a side for.

 

“This was your fault!” Bellamy accused the commander once he was within a few feet of her.

 

One of the commander’s warriors turned toward Bellamy reaching to pull out his sword. He was only able to get it pulled out a little bit before he noticed the commander’s hand go up to stop him in his tracks. She turned to him and he got the message from her eyes that she was alright and didn’t require his assistance in this matter.

 

“I-“

 

Was all the commander was able to get out before Clarke ran in and stood right in between them, “Bellamy stop!” She put her hands out in front of her to get him to stop with his accusation. “This is not her fault. I made the decision all on my own.”

 

“Is that what she’s made you believe now? She’s got you wrapped around her little finger doesn’t she?” Bellamy couldn’t take his eyes off of the commander. If it were possible fire would have been coming out of his ears he was so mad. What she’d done to his friend, he was not okay with.

 

“I would never manipulate--“ The commander tried to get out but Clarke cut her off again.

 

Clarke moved right in front of Lexa so that Bellamy couldn’t see her and hopefully he’d stop sending her death glares. “This wasn’t her. I decided all on my own not to tell anyone about the missile. Yes, she was the one to make the argument but I didn’t have to go along with it. I chose to go along with it on my own accord.”

 

He could help but laugh a little, “Your own accord. Really? Because I think she made you make that choice. Just like she made you change your mind about sending me to Mount Weather.” He continued to accuse Lexa with Clarke in the middle. “You say it was all you but you know what… Ever since we joined up with them you’ve become just as bad as them.”

 

“Bellamy, if you weren’t in Mount Weather, we all wouldn’t be standing here right now. We wouldn’t have just won this war.” Her words echoed all around them.

 

The grounders around them cheered in victory. Lexa being one of the people stuck in this conversation raised her hand above her head to stop the cheering so that she could continue to listen.

 

“But you’ve changed. This isn’t you. The Clarke I know wouldn’t have let a missile kill hundreds of people to preserve a mission. The Clarke I know would have found a way around it.” He stated fighting back the emotions he was feeling in this moment because the anger was getting to be too much.

 

Finally finding her backbone it was Clarke’s turn to accuse him, “This isn’t the first time we’ve had to make a hard call Bellamy and you know that. When the grounders were bent on killing us in the dropship, we found a way out of it.” Tears were beginning to build up in Clarke’s eyes from the anger and sadness that took over her in this moment. “I had to make the hard call to close the dropship doors with you and Finn outside the ship. That was me! I had to choose to keep our people safe so I shut the doors and let the rockets burn everyone outside of the ship. Hundreds of grounders died that day and even some of our people but I had to make that call. You say I’ve changed, you say that I’m a different person now… I was different from that moment on.” She couldn’t help the air that fell out of her mouth from that burst of anger that overwhelmed her. “The grounders that are here today,” She looked around at the circle that had formed around them. “Some of them probably lost people in our plan. That’s on me. I killed them. I chose to shut the doors. I know that if I wouldn’t have, we’d all be dead right now. I know that but I still did it. These grounders here,” She motioned the ones around them with her hands, “They chose to fight alongside us. With the people who killed their friends, their family. So yes, I,” emphasis on ‘I’, “chose to not tell anyone about the missile. I chose to let all those people die because it was what was needed for the mission.” She was starting to calm down a bit as she stared at him for a response.

 

Bellamy didn’t look as pissed off anymore but he still didn’t look like he understood it either, “What we have to do to survive, it doesn’t define us… Do you remember that?” He asked already knowing her answer but wanting to hear it anyway.  


“Of course,” Clarke nodded feeling a lot calmer.

 

“Well you’ve crossed a line with this one. What we did to the grounders with the dropship was us trying to stay alive. What you did to the people of that village…” He stopped for a second to shake his head, “You crossed a line. A line I don’t think you’ll be able to come back from. Their blood is on your hands and your hands alone.” With that he stormed off in a fit of rage.

 

“Bellamy,” she called after him but he was gone. Her shoulders slumped down in defeat. After winning such a huge battle, she never thought she’d feel this way so soon, so defeated. She should feel exhilarated; excited that the war is over but in this moment she didn’t know what she felt.

 

The warriors around them went back to what they were doing while Lexa stood there unsure of what she should do. On one hand she wanted to be there for Clarke, try to make her feel better but because the argument was partially about her she wasn’t sure if she should do anything. So she waited and watched Clarke. The least she could do is be there for her if needed. If not, well she’ll go back to making sure the dead get put where they need to be for the ceremony that would occur that night if everything was set up by then.

 

Clarke just stood there frozen in place. There was so much she could be doing in this instance but she couldn’t get her legs moving. Of all the people who told her that she was wrong, she thought Bellamy would have understood. _Maybe it’s a Blake thing,_ Clarke thought as she turned to leave when she almost crashed right into Lexa forgetting she was there.

 

“Oh, I’m sorry. I turned the wrong way,” Clarke apologized putting her arms out in caution just in case she needed to catch the commander.

 

However, just like usual the commander was too aware of her surroundings to fall over if someone were to crash into her, “It is alright Clarke. I am fine.” She wanted to ask Clarke how she was, she wanted to comfort her but she didn’t know if Clarke would be alright with that. Clarke had told her she wasn’t ready to be with anyone right now. She didn’t want to push the blonde further away.

 

Clarke stood tall again, “Then I guess I should get back to bandaging up the rest of the wounded.” She turned to leave when a voice she never would have expected stopped her.

 

“Wait…”

 

The blonde turned back around to face the commander, “Yes.”

 

Lexa just stared at Clarke not sure what to say. About a minute or so passed and nothing was said, they both just stared at each other waiting for one of them to speak before Lexa found her voice again, “Do you have enough bandages? Do you need more? I could get someone to—“

 

She was cut off by Clarke stating the obvious, “I know what you’re doing.”

 

“I do not know what you mean.” Lexa looked at her confused.

 

Clarke sighed, “Yes, you do.” She could see from the look on Lexa’s face that she was right in assuming she knew what the commander was thinking. “I appreciate what you’re trying to do. However no distraction will keep me from thinking about the fact that the one person I thought would understand why I did what I did now looks at me like a stranger. I just want to feel like I’m of use and bandage up the wounded. I’ll see you later.” This time Clarke turned around and never looked back.

 

Lexa was stuck standing there feeling the jealousy coming back to her. She wanted to feel sorry for Clarke but there was something about Bellamy that Lexa just didn’t like and knowing that the blonde was stuck thinking about him was not settling with her. Not one bit. So she did what any person would do in this situation, she stuck to the work at hand. She went back to ordering around people and making sure that everything was set up correctly for the ceremony that night. They all knew how it went, they were all used to it by now, and she knew that, but she wanted to make sure they knew her presence was there still in this time of need. That even though the sky people were probably here to stay, they wanted to know that their traditions were still there.

 

The commander looked off in the distance several minutes later and spotted Clarke bandaging up one of her warriors arms, she could see the playful smile she was witness to here and there. She always thought it was nice to see her stone cold killer warriors having a good time with the leader of the sky people. It said to her that they would be okay. That even with this war being over, they would be able to mingle their worlds together and start building a home for the both of them united as one. She was excited to see where that would lead.


	2. Chapter 2

Several hours later and darkness had overtaken the land once more. All that could be seen were the several torches that scattered the area to light up the way. Some were stuck in the ground, others were held by grounders and sky people alike as they gathered together for this one moment of remembrance.

 

The grounders had built this structure made of wood to hold all of the bodies, both grounders and sky people who were lost in the war. This was a moment for them to really join together as one. They had just won a war together but being united in fire was one of the highest graces. It wasn’t like the fire in Tondc after Finn was killed. That was for justice, to cleanse the pain of the past. No, this was about uniting their two people in the heavens above. For using fire as a form of burial was all the grounders had known because burying their dead every time would have taken over their land.

 

They didn’t lose tens of people or even hundreds, it was thousands. Thousands and thousands of their people were killed for various reasons over the years. Using fire to send them above to the heavens was a final cast off that each and every grounder looked forward to because they all knew that at some point it would happen to them. They would be freed of the terror the mountain men had on them. Not to say that they waited for their death to happen. No, they trained and they braved everything that came their way so that if it ever came. If death came knocking they wouldn’t be afraid because they knew they would end up in a place of freedom.

 

That’s what this moment was as every single grounder and sky person gathered in the area around the wooden structure filled with bodies. Of the sky people that were there, the families of the ones who were lost, they left little things and said a few words to the people they had lost. This confused the grounders because it wasn’t there way to leave little trinkets that would be lost in the fire but they allowed it as it was two traditions coming together as one.

 

Clarke and Lexa stood on a block higher above the thousands of people below them as they watched the exchanges occur.

 

“Why do they do that?” Lexa whispered over to Clarke not taking her eyes off of the scene in front of them. She wanted to see every little thing the sky people did because it fascinated her and clearly from some of the other grounders it interested them as well.

 

Clarke looked over to where Lexa’s eyesight laid before she explained, “Up on the ark, when someone died we always left out little things to celebrate who the person was.”

 

Lexa’s brow scrunched up in confusion, “But why do they leave things on the bodies? Are they not aware that they will get burned in the ceremony?”

 

Sometimes it amazed Clarke at just how different their two people were and this moment in death was no different. “Things up on the ark were always so limited so we only ever left little notes and some would leave more precious possessions. It was our way to say goodbye to someone. It made people feel better about the loss. Help them to move on,” she ended as she continued to look over at the few people leaving notes and saying a few words.

 

The commander’s brow softened a little realizing the sentiment of what Clarke was saying to her, “Kind of like this ritual for us then?”

 

Clarke finally looked over to the commander next to her, “Yes, I guess you’re right.” She looked back toward the remaining people leaving notes, “We say goodbye with notes and your people say goodbye through fire.”

 

“Our people,” Lexa corrected Clarke before she even realized what she was saying.

 

Clarke didn’t know how to respond to that. She had hoped that they could be one group rather than known as the grounders and sky people but she never would have thought those words would be suggested by Lexa. Never in a million years could she predict that. She was too stunned to respond.

 

Lexa could tell that she had hit a soft spot for Clarke with her words and honestly she was glad Clarke didn’t respond because she too was a little surprised at what she had said. However it was something she had thought of ever since Clarke had said that Lincoln was her people when she killed the sniper terrorizing the people of Tondc. Somewhere along the way Clarke stopped thinking of them as different people, and Lexa was starting to see it too.

 

Indra came over to the block off to the left of Lexa. After making sure the commander noticed her presence she advised, _“Commander, it’s time.”_

With a quick nod, Lexa stood back up tall and looked over all of the expectant people in front of them. Some knew what was going to happen, most looked at her curious to find out how this went.

 

The people of the ark were so used to death by floatation. They never got anything else because once the body was in space; there was no need to bring it back in. So for them to get this moment to really celebrate the ones they had lost, they were kind of excited for this new era.

 

Clarke spotted her mom in the crowd waiting patiently just like everyone else to find out what was going to happen next. She had arrived a few hours beforehand and was working on trying to find a solution for the few people of the mountain that were on their side on how to get their immunity up to fight radiation. Abby was hopeful but Clarke had no idea whether she found something or not as she’d been too busy helping set this up after she bandaged the remaining warriors.

 

Lexa looked around at all of the people in front of them taking in the vast amount of people left over and the unity that this would bring both of their people.

 

“Tree people and Sky people, we came together today not as two different people but as one group bent on destroying our enemy and we did.” The crowd burst out in cheering. Lexa allowed it to go on for a bit before she raised her hand to continue. “Today was a day of unity, a day we will all look back on years from now and know that we made history.” She took a brief moment to collect her thoughts and let that moment sink in for the rest. “Just like any battle, there will be losses. We all knew that coming into this war. However, they did not go down without a fight. Each and every person here,” she motioned to the structure beside them. “They fought with courage and strength. Today, in this moment we celebrate them.”   

Lexa all of a sudden changed languages and spoke in her native tongue, _“In fire, we celebrate the heart and souls of the Warriors whose lives were taken in the war of Mount Weather.”_ She felt that these words needed to be in _Trigedasleng_ , the words of her people. However, she did not stop there. Unlike the one in Tondc, she reiterated it in English, “In fire…”

 

In this moment Clarke gained a whole new respect for the commander next to her. She went further than she would have all those weeks ago when they first met. Back then, the commander would not have spoken the words she said in her language in English but because this was a new era she did. A torch was handed up to her by Indra. There was no hatred this time, she did not look at Clarke in disgust that she would be taking the lead; this time there was respect behind those hardened eyes.

 

Just like the time before, Clarke spoke those words that each warrior that died had the pleasure to hear, _“Your fight is over.”_ By this point, no one needed it explained in English as the phrase was said enough that it was clear among both sides. With that Clarke lowered the torch into the brush hidden below the wood and watched as it slowly lit on fire. As it did she got down and walked to the other end and put the torch under the other side leaving it there to catch the rest on fire. They all stood there and watched as the flames engulfed the entire structure.

 

xxxxxxxxx

 

It took a few hours but eventually, the fire got down to practically nothing. The flames were burning out and all that seemed to be left was ash and a couple of embers. By this time there were only a few people remaining but they were slowly leaving until there was only a couple. The rest had left at different moments to go to the party that the sky people had set up to celebrate the victory of mount weather. There was dancing and drinking, both sides basked in the company of each other celebrating this victory that neither side thought could happen.

 

Lexa was one of the few people who were left staring at the remaining flames burning out. These were her people, her people that fought to their dying breath to win this war. She was proud to have lead them to this point, so she felt it was her duty to be there until the end. Even if that meant watching their bodies turn to ash.

 

“It was a nice ceremony,” someone admitted standing to the right of her.

 

The commander turned her head and met eyes with someone she never would have expected to find there, “Can I help you with something?” Her voice seethed with underlying anger as she hadn’t gotten over what was exchanged earlier that day and didn’t want this moment to be ruined by him coming by.

 

“No, I just thought I would try to make peace.”

“Peace, I am not the person you should be speaking to about peace.” She couldn’t look him in the eyes after she found out who it was. Her eyes were zeroed in on the burning embers.

 

He moved in front of her blocking her sight, “Hey, I get it. What I said earlier went a little far but you have to understand that the person I knew before is not the person who is here now.” He shot back at the commander not caring what she could do to him. “The only person who has been, has been you.”

 

The commander smirked a little looking him in the eyes now that she didn’t have a choice, “Clarke has grown as a leader. Something you obviously know nothing about. If that means that she’s changed then she’s changed for the better. She’s become a better leader because she chose to. I did not guide her down the path she took. She did herself!” She put her foot down and the glare she gave him bored into his soul.

 

The commander was pissed and he put her there. He wasn’t sure if he wanted to push further.

 

Noticing that there seemed to be no more light behind him she realized the flames were out and decided to turn away and go toward the celebration. She knew her woods like the back of her hand; she didn’t need a torch to guide her. However as much as she didn’t like the man behind her she yelled back, “You might want to grab a torch, I would not want you falling down a hole.” She knew that as much as she may not like Bellamy, Clarke still did in some way she’ll never understand so she’d rather he be alive rather than dead. She needed to win this battle fair and square.

 

As she moved closer to the roar of laughter her mood became ten times better as she spotted several people having a good time. Some grounders she could see were trying not to have a good time because they were still in fear that something might happen whereas others were practically stumbling over with some of the sky people. It was a nice sight to see for her. She wanted to go over to those grounders that were a little unsure however, she didn’t want to push them to a place they didn’t want to be. If they wanted to party like the sky people they would. If not, then that’s fine.

 

She turned around for just a moment to make sure that Bellamy got back safely. In the distance she could see a single torch making its way closer to the party. Looking around she could see blonde hair dancing on the dance floor with Octavia and could clearly see a smile plastered on her face. She would recognize that blue jacket anywhere. She knew that person having a good time was most definitely Clarke. These were the moments she enjoyed the most. Just watching people feel happy. However, even with the war they’d won, even with the ceremony being over, even with the argument she’d just barely avoided with Bellamy, she wasn’t in a party mood. So after a few minutes of just watching she made her way back to her tent.

 

Meanwhile in the world of Clarke, she was dancing it up with Octavia and Lincoln. They were in a bit of a dance competition with Wick and a crippled Raven. Raven and Wick had come up with Abby to help salvage Mount Weather. See if there was anything worth taking in the mountain. However, right now they were trying to beat Clarke and Octavia in a dance battle. To be honest, everyone was surprised by Lincoln’s sick moves and he was kicking their asses.

 

“Lincoln, where did you learn to dance?” Clarke yelled over the music that was playing. Someone had found a record player in the mountain and with the help of Monty and Raven; they were able to amp up the music so it was more of a party.

 

He shrugged his shoulders, “I’m just moving. This is dancing?”

 

She nodded, “And from the way Octavia is looking at you, you’re doing a good job.” She winked at him.

 

He didn’t know how to respond to that but was thankful that it was dark because he may have blushed in that moment. “Does this mean we win?” He asked thinking he knew the answer already.

 

Octavia jumped over in the beat, “Yeah, I’d say you won. Phew… you’re going to have to show me these moves.” She moved in closer to him and distracted him enough to plant her lips on his.

 

His movements slowed as he kissed her back.

 

Clarke and Raven got the message and turned away to leave. “Hey, I’m going to go get another drink, do you want anything?” Raven called over to Clarke.

 

The blonde shook her head, “No that’s alright. Actually I think I’m going to go look for Lexa.”

 

Raven nodded her head and then turned to go toward their make-shift bar in the middle of the clearing.

 

Clarke looked over to where the fire would have been and couldn’t see any more lights so she figured the commander couldn’t still be over there. She then spotted Monty and Jasper having a discussion in front of a fire sitting on some logs.

 

Walking over to them she pulled up a log so she could sit just behind them and get their attention, “Hey guys.”

 

Jasper turned to Clarke, “Oh hey Clarke. Are you enjoying the party?”

 

“Yeah it’s fun. Hey have you seen Lexa?” She asked wondering where the elusive commander could be hiding.

 

Monty looked at Jasper confused and back to Clarke, “I don’t think I’ve met a Lexa. Have you?” He turned back to Jasper. Jasper shrugged his shoulders.

 

“Really? The commander of the grounders, you don’t know who that is?” She looked at them a little dumbfounded.

 

Monty tapped a finger to his lips in thought, “No I don’t think I met a commander.” When a thought came to mind, “Wait, the commander of the grounders is a woman?”

 

Clarke nodded, “Yes. Are you sure you haven’t met her? I’m pretty sure she said she introduced herself to you guys.”

 

Jasper looked at Monty and back to Clarke, “Nope, I don’t think so. What does she look like?”

 

“Uhh… She’s about my height, long brown hair in tons of braids…” It looked like that wasn’t cluing them in. “Oh, I believe she still had her armour on. So she was wearing a big armour piece on her left shoulder.” Clarke described using her hands to try and get the point across but it looked from their faces that they still had no idea. She huffed in defeat before another thought came to mind, “She still had her war paint on. The black around the eyes that looked like it was dripping down her cheeks…”

 

“Oh…. The one with the gold wheel between her eyebrows?” Monty asked.

 

“Yes, that’s her. Have you seen her?” Clarke asked again now that they know who she’s talking about.

 

“I believe I saw her walking in that direction,” Jasper pointed toward the tents area.

 

Clarke looked in that direction, “You mean to her tent?”

 

Jasper shrugged his shoulders, “Maybe. Is that where her tent is?”

 

Clarke’s head fell in defeat as she shook her head. “Yes, her tent is over there.” She was about to get up when Monty stopped her with another question.

 

“Wait. So she’s the commander?” He questioned Clarke.

 

“Yes, she’s the commander of the grounders.” Clarke answered wondering where this was going.

 

Monty looked at Jasper with a certain little glint in his eye before looking back at Clarke with a smirk, “She’s hot.”

 

Clarke didn’t know how to answer that statement because she had obviously noticed the beauty of the commander quite a long time ago. One would have to be blind not to see the beauty there.

 

“Do you think she’s single?” Monty raised an eyebrow curiously. “See Jasper has Maya and I don’t have anyone so maybe she’d want to go out with me… What do you think Clarke?”

 

“What?”

 

“Do you think she’d date me?” Monty asked again.

 

Clarke knew for a fact that Lexa was single because of their shared kiss the day before. It was clear in that moment that Lexa only had eyes for her however, there was a part of her that wanted to play with Monty here. “I don’t’ know Monty. Maybe you should ask her yourself. You do know that grounders respect courage.” She held in a smile because she wanted to stay as stoic as she could because she wanted to see the future exchange or at least the story from either of them later on.

 

“Right… courage.” For a minute it looked like he was going to do it as he zoned out on a random tree behind her. “But do you think you could maybe ask her for me? See if I have a chance.” He asked hopeful that Clarke would do this for him.

 

“Monty, I’m not going to ask her if she’d be interested in dating you.” His shoulders slumped down, “Just, do it yourself. Won’t you feel so much better if you do it yourself?” She looked at him trying to instill hope when she literally knew there was none.

 

“Hmm… Maybe you’re right Clarke. Especially since she’s the commander, I should probably man up and do it myself.” He nodded to himself.

 

Clarke stood up again, “So I can leave now then?”

 

Monty waved her off, “Yes - yes, you can go. Jasper and I will plan out how I’ll talk to her.” Once they saw her walking away, she could hear him say, “So what should I do to talk to her?”

 

Once Clarke was out of range of them and close enough to Lexa’s tent she couldn’t help but giggle at the mess she just created there. She was excited to hear the story from either Lexa or Monty about how bad that goes. Knowing Lexa, she’d probably have to get the story out of Monty but still, either way it was going to be good. Clarke could see light coming from the tent as she reached the entrance signalling to her that Lexa must be inside it.

 

Pushing one of the drapes away so she could enter she did so with a smile on her face still feeling the emotion from her moment with Monty and Jasper. “Hey, where’ve you been?” She asked before taking in the scene before her.

 

Lexa was sitting on her throne with a bowl of water in her lap and a cloth in her hand with her head sunken low on her shoulders. Her eyes were focused on something on the ground looking completely lost.

 

“Hey, are you okay?” Clarke looked concerned as she walked into the tent moving closer getting no response. Once she was right in front of the commander, “Lexa?”

 

Finally something jostled her out of her state catching the bowl of water before it spilled everywhere, “What? I can- I can explain…” She defended her actions before she realized who was in the room and completely calmed down, “Clarke.”

 

Clarke looked at her suspiciously, “Are you okay? You looked like you were on another planet.”

 

Lexa composed herself, straightened her back, “I am fine.”

 

The sky leader squinted her eyes looking at the commander, “You’re not fine.” Before gazing at her fully with open eyes, “Someone who is fine would be out at that party yet you’re in your tent staring at the floor. Does that sound like someone who is fine?” Clarke questioned Lexa.

 

“I suppose you are correct.”

 

“Then what’s wrong?” Clarke asked again waiting patiently for an answer. She could see from the look on Lexa’s face that she was fighting herself on telling Clarke what was wrong. The whole ‘love is weakness’ thing coming to mind. The mighty leader of the grounders couldn’t show weakness. “It’s just me in here. You can tell me.”

 

Lexa could see the sincerity on Clarke’s face. She wanted to open up but she couldn’t. From the moment that Costia was ripped away from her she had learned to bottle her feelings up.

 

“Hey I know that opening up is hard for you, I get that. If you don’t want to tell me what’s wrong, I’ll drop it.” Clarke tried to reassure the leader sitting in front of her. When there was no answer Clarke took it that Lexa wanted to be alone so she turned around and made her way toward the tent exit.

 

“I’m still…” She let out a breath she didn’t know she was holding in as she watched Clarke slowly turn back around to face her. “This just seems so strange for me. All of this.”

 

Clarke walked closer to Lexa not wanting to speak just yet because she didn’t want Lexa to lose her nerve.

 

“Knowing that the fear that I have known my entire life is gone… I know that it should be celebrated but I cannot seem to wrap my mind around it.” She revealed to Clarke with almost no hesitation. A feeling she hadn’t had with someone in a very long time. “I should be able to wipe off the war paint and dried blood and just move on but I cannot.”

 

“I can’t relate to what you’re feeling.” She could see Lexa’s eyes connect with hers. “I didn’t have the life you’ve had so I can’t say what you should do and what you shouldn’t. All I can say is that this is a new world that all of us live in now. We all have to deal with this new found peace. Some will deal with it better than others… That’s just how it is.” She took a moment for that to sink in to the commander. Before she suggested something, “How about I help you?”

 

Lexa looked at her confused, “What?”

 

“Help you take the war paint off.” She could see the panic in Lexa’s eyes so she immediately defended her actions, “I know that this is probably something more suited for a loved one but why not? You and I have grown close. If it weren’t for you and I, this war never would have been won. If you never took a chance on me, on creating an alliance with my people, we wouldn’t be standing here now.” After a moment she added with a laugh, “Actually I’d probably be dead right now if you had your way.” She confessed receiving a brief smile from the very stoic commander.  

 

The commander took a moment to think it over and after a couple of moments she realized that this could be good for them. “Alright, but this stays between you and I. No one must know about this.”

“Yeah yeah, you need to look strong in front of your warriors.” Clarke teased as Lexa handed her the cloth.

 

“I’m serious Clarke,” she insisted needing to know that Clarke was well aware.

 

Clarke reached to put the cloth in the water when Lexa covered in with her arms glaring at her for a response. “Alright, I got your message. I will not tell anyone that I helped you take off your war paint. Good?”  

 

Lexa nodded once with her eyes and head before removing her arms from the bowl and giving Clarke access to the water.

 

Clarke kneeled down on the top step of the throne right in between Lexa’s legs. The blonde didn’t even think anything of it as she began washing away the black paint and dry blood that Lexa missed earlier.

 

However Lexa on the other hand was fighting a heat that had taken over her body the second that Clarke’s hand touched her face. She had such a delicate touch as though she thought the commander might break. It was refreshing to be touched in such a soothing way. Lexa closed her eyes as she felt Clarke nearing the paint around her eyes. She just basked in the warmth of the water trickling down her face as she could feel herself being freed of the war that had consumed her. Clarke was right in this moment. This was a good idea. She was already starting to feel better.

 

Before she knew it, the moment was over and Clarke was getting up and picking up the bowl from her lap.  


“Already finished?” Lexa asked coming out of her daze as she left her eyes shut once she closed them.

 

Clarke chuckled, “Oh so you are awake. I thought I had lost you there for a minute.”

 

“I did not want the paint getting in my eyes.” Lexa stated knowing how difficult it was to loosen it once it was in her eye.

 

“Well I’m done now. Good as new.” Clarke stated from the table she had placed the bowl on with the cloth unsure of what Lexa wanted done with the water and cloth.

 

Lexa stood from her place on the throne and walked over to Clarke, reaching past her on purpose to pick up the bowl. “Thank you Clarke.” She stood tall and couldn’t help the look she was giving Clarke in that moment. The intense feelings she had for the blonde always overwhelmed her at the worst of times.

 

Clarke gulped back some bile in her throat, “Right… Um… You’re welcome.” She could see the look on Lexa’s face, it looked similar to the one she had before she had kissed her the day before. Boy did she want to kiss her in this moment but Clarke did not want to lead Lexa on. She wasn’t ready to be with anyone yet. Clarke knew that she wanted to wait until she was completely sure she was over Finn before jumping in with Lexa. The woman deserved more than a rushed relationship. “I guess I should be going… Do you want to come to the party now?” She looked at the leader hopeful.

 

“I think I am going to skip this one. You have fun though,” Lexa smiled a little hopeful for Clarke to have fun at the party.

 

“Okay, have a good night then,” With that Clarke got her ass out of there before her resolve came down and she kissed Lexa right there and then. Clarke shook her head coming out of the tent. “Yikes,” she whispered to herself before walking back in the direction of the party.

 

Lexa couldn’t help the smile that came over her as she watched Clarke leave her tent. _So close…_ She knew that she would never kiss Clarke again unless Clarke initiated it because she wanted Clarke to want it as much as she did. So for now she would rather have these brief moments of watching Clarke fight it until the sky leader figures out what she wanted.   


	3. Chapter 3

The very next day, everyone including the leaders were standing in front of the door that lead into Mount Weather. Abby was standing at the front of everyone on a box to make it easier for people farther back to see her. She had some news on her work concerning the people still trapped in the mountain.

 

Clarke and Lexa were standing off to the right side of Abby on the ground looking out at the combination of both their people.

 

Lexa wasn’t wearing all of her armour anymore. Instead she was wearing her normal outfit with the sheath and a new blade attached to her back since her last one was destroyed when she and Clarke were attacked by the gorilla, and her dagger attached to her hip. Even though she knew the war was over, she couldn’t let go of carrying around a sword just in case. They may have won the war against Mount Weather but there were still dangers in the woods.

 

Since the attack in the forest, Clarke always carried her gun with her as well just in case.

 

“Everyone!” Abby called out to everyone trying to get them to stop speaking. Some listened, most did not.

 

Lexa looked over to see her having difficulties so she raised her right hand high above her head and not long after the crowd went silent. Lowering her hand she looked over at Abby and nodded indicating that she may speak now.

 

Clarke turned her head to look at Lexa who was still looking forward, “You need to teach me how to do that,” She whispered wanting to make sure that they weren’t interrupting Abby’s speech.

 

Lexa kept her smile to herself as she looked over to Clarke, “It is not difficult once you know you have the respect of all of your warriors.”

 

Clarke wanted to respond but then Abby began to speak, “Okay, now that I have your attention. We have the matter of the people within the mountain. From the research I have read from Dr. Tsing, the only thing that has had a permanent effect has been the bone marrow from those of us from space. Maybe the grounders bone marrow would have worked but it looks like she never tried that. All I know is the bone marrow from us has worked. Now, from what I have read and what I’ve been told by the remaining survivors, they had to have a blood transfusion every two weeks otherwise they would die. I wish that I could stand up here and say that I have a solution for this.” She took a moment to take a breath knowing what she had to say next. “I think that if I had a few years, I might be able to find one but I don’t have that kind of time.” She looked over at all the people with a hopeful look, “So I am standing up here, hoping that some of you will volunteer to give bone marrow for those trapped in the mountain. I hoped that it wouldn’t come to this because so many of you suffered at the hands of the mountain men. However, I can assure you that if you volunteer, you will not be treated the same. You will be under anaesthetic during the procedure. The most that you’ll feel is some discomfort afterward, maybe some difficulty walking but it will only last a few days. Some of you may be longer but it really depends on the person.”

 

Before she could continue a voice rang out over the crowd.

 

“I’ll volunteer!”

 

Everyone turned to find the person who had yelled and whose hand was in the air. It was Bellamy.

 

“Bellamy, what are you doing?” Octavia asked standing next to him.

 

He looked at her and then back to everyone staring at him. He explained loud enough for everyone to hear, “If it wasn’t for Maya, this plan wouldn’t have worked. This war wouldn’t have been won. I was hanging upside down about to be harvested when she rescued me. I owe her my life and I owe the parents in there that risked their lives to hide away the forty-four. If needed I’ll donate more than once because they deserve to be out here as much as we do.”

 

Jasper wasn’t far from him when his voice could be heard over the crowd, “I’ll volunteer as well.”

 

Monty’s voice could be heard as well.

 

Then all of a sudden a voice no one could have predicted spoke, “I will volunteer as well.” Each and every person turned to look at Ryder, one of the grounder warriors. “There was a time where I would never help the mountain men because they took my wife. However, I would not be alive right now if it was not for a brave warrior within those walls. When I was knocked down, reaching for my sword a soldier came out of nowhere. In that moment, I thought I would meet my wife again in the heavens. But then this man shot and killed the soldier, saving my life. I fought with him until his dying breath.” He moved from where he was standing and walked to the front of the crowd before turning around to face them all. “Those people in there,” he pointed back at the door, “One of them saved my life, when they did not need to.” He turned to Abby, “I will help if I can,” as he bowed his head before looking back at the crowd before him.

 

Clarke watched as more and more people were volunteering, the numbers were growing higher and higher including both sky and grounder. The grounders didn’t even know if their bone marrow would work but they volunteered anyways. She took a step forward so she could see everyone including her mother more clearly, “I volunteer!” She yelled out and all the shouting stopped as they looked at one of the leaders. “Everyone is right. If it weren’t for the people in there now, we wouldn’t have gotten our people out. I will help if needed.”  

 

With Clarke’s brave choice to help as well, a few people directed their attention onto Lexa to see if she would volunteer as well. Most were too caught up in volunteering themselves but others were curious to know if the big bad grounder leader would be willing to help as well.

 

Lexa was having a battle inside her mind. On one hand she wanted to help but didn’t want to feel weak, she knew what weakness was to her people and didn’t want her life to end because of this mistake. On the other hand, the mountain had taken so much from her and as much as she knew helping was a good thing, she didn’t know if she could get over what they’d taken from her. Her parents, her friends, elders, children, she had watched her people be terrorized her entire life and becoming the leader made that feeling worse.

 

“You don’t need to do it if you don’t want,” Clarke whispered over to Lexa pulling her from her state of turmoil.

 

Lexa looked down at the ground briefly as she whispered, “I do not want to let my people down if I do not do this.”

 

As soon as other people realized the commander was not going to do it, they went back to cheering on the other several people as they made their way to the front of the pack showing that they would be volunteering.

 

Clarke turned her body fully to look at Lexa who had turned her head now to see what Clarke was going to say, “Think of it like this… While I’m down and out, all of the leadership responsibilities fall on you. If we’re both down, then there would be no one to leader our people,” she reassured the hard commander.

 

“Clarke you know that someone could easily temporarily fill out the position, if need be.” Lexa stated knowing she was right because there have been times in the past where Lexa wasn’t able to lead. Times that she will never speak of because she felt weak, but times none the less.

 

“I realize that, but if you need a reason to not do it. There you go. You need to do this because you want to do it not because you have to. There is a reason it’s called volunteering. You decide if you want to do it or not.”

 

“I know what volunteering means,” she responded a little harsh.

 

Clarke knew the tough commander didn’t mean for what she said to come out as harsh as it did. She knew that the commander was conflicted about her emotions on things like this. “How about this…” Finally she got Lexa to turn her entire body to face Clarke. “You will only volunteer if it’s absolutely needed. I can see as well as you can that there are a lot of people volunteering.” She motioned to rather large group taking over the front area. Actually Clarke couldn’t really tell where the group ended and the crowd began it was that large. “So much that everyone probably won’t be needed. If by some crazy chance, there isn’t enough bone marrow, then you can volunteer. Sound good?”

 

Lexa let go of a breath she wasn’t aware she wasn’t holding in, without answering all she did was nod with her entire head including her eyelids.

 

“Good. Now, I’m going to ask my mom to do me first so that I don’t lose my nerve,” She nodded with a smile before walking off through the crowd toward her mother. Lexa was left standing off to the side alone with her thoughts.

 

XXXXXXXXX

 

It was a couple days after Clarke donated her bone marrow for the people in the mountain and she still felt like she was crushed by a boulder. Her hips constantly hurt when she walked, she couldn’t even think about running. That was completely off the table. If she were to get stuck in the woods and needed to run because maybe something was chasing her, she would be dead and she knew it. Riding a horse was even worse than running so she couldn’t even use that as a mode of transportation so she was stuck in bed staring at nothing. Even sitting was a nightmare so she couldn’t just hang out with Raven, Wick and Monty in mount weather as they rummaged through all of the electronics in there looking for anything useful.

 

In this moment, for the last few days she felt as useless as a piece of grass. Actually, grass was more useful than her in this moment. At least it was used to feed the horses and the grounders probably used it for some kind of remedy.

 

Clarke huffed out in annoyance just as someone came into her tent. She shot up supporting herself on her elbows as she knew that sitting was almost as bad as walking as she looked at the person who had entered her tent. Well it wasn’t really her tent, it was the commander’s tent but that was beside the point. Since they never set up a tent for Clarke went they came for the war of mount weather, they didn’t think it was right to build yet another one when they’d probably be leaving this area soon.

 

“You sent for me,” Lexa walked over to the opposite corner next to the throne chair where Clarke was currently residing. For various reasons, Lexa didn’t think it was appropriate for them to be sharing the same bed so she had requested one be made for Clarke after the war ended. Before the war, they shared the bed because they were never resting at the same time. If one was resting, the other was up and walking around.

 

“Why did you let me do this to myself?!?” She bellowed in agony as she flopped back on her back.

 

Lexa’s brow creased, “This was your choice to make Clarke.”

 

“You are not helping!” She slammed her arms against the bed creating a bit of a ripple causing her hips to move a little. A bit of pain shot through her body and she couldn’t help but to wince a little.

 

“I am confused, if you did not want to do this, why did you?” She asked pulling up a stool sitting near Clarke’s bed.  

 

The sky leader sighed, “It was the right thing to do but now, now I’m not so sure it was a good idea.”

 

Lexa nodded, “Yes it is strange that you are taking so long to recover when Bellamy is up and walking around with little problem.”

 

“He’s what?” She asked feeling a little irritated. “Who else is walking around?” Her eyes trained on the commander’s face trying to read every little emotion she could get her eyes on. It was not easy to read the hard faced commander but every so often Clarke would see a glimpse of her walls coming down.

 

The commander took a moment to think about it, “I believe most of the people who have undergone the same procedure are walking around. It seems only you are having problems.” She stated not really realizing what Clarke was hearing from it.

 

“Great…” She dragged on the word feeling even worse than she did before she asked someone to fetch the commander for her. With one more sigh she lifted herself back on her elbows, “Could you do me a favor?”

 

Lexa nodded, “What can I do for you?”

 

“Can you help me up so that I may take my afternoon walk?” She moved all of her weight onto her left arm as she stuck out her right arm to get some help.

 

Lexa eyed Clarke suspiciously, “You summoned me here so that I may help you walk around?”

 

Clarke smiled guilty, “Maybe. Can you just help me up, please?”

 

Reluctantly, Lexa eventually helped Clarke get out of bed and onto her feet. As much as she didn’t want to do a warrior in training’s job, she knew that she would never hear the end of it from Clarke if she didn’t help.

 

Once Clarke was up on her feet, she just stood there, “Okay…” After taking a deep breath, she took one step and almost toppled over but Lexa caught her before she hit the ground. She looked up into deep evergreen eyes that stared at her with concern. For a moment, she just wanted to stay here in her arms. The warmth that she felt was undefinable.

 

“Clarke, are you okay?” Lexa asked again noticing Clarke was a little unresponsive.

 

Snapping from her state, she focused on the commander who was supporting her weight, “Uh, yeah, yes, I feel fine. Thanks for catching me.” She apologized as she stood up more so Lexa wasn’t supporting her as much. “I think my foot just fell asleep. I forgot to give it enough time to get feeling before walking.”

 

“Fell asleep? How can a foot fall asleep?” Lexa pondered aloud.

 

“Do you ever get this tingling feeling in your hand or foot if you’re sitting in a certain way?” No response, Lexa just continued to stare at her confused. “Anyways, um, if you sit in a certain way for too long sometimes the nerves get cut off and it essentially falls asleep. It only takes a couple seconds to get the feeling back and then its fine. Since I’ve been lying here for so long with my legs crossed, I must have forgotten to move my foot every so often.” She explained trying to her best to point at her foot to help give visual representation.

 

“So you do not need a healer then?” The look on Lexa’s face was a combination of concern and confusion. Clarke couldn’t tell which was winning over.

 

Clarke shook her head, “No, I’m fine. I’m used to it.” She goes to take another step and Lexa is right there prepared to support her if needed.

 

 “Do you need me to come with you?” Lexa looked a little optimistic that she could be close to the sky leader but tried to keep it under wraps so not to look desperate.

 

Clarke could see right through her façade, “If you would like to come, sure but I promise you I don’t usually fall. Unless I feel that the ground needs a hug then I can’t help but oblige,” She chuckled as she made fun of her clumsiness.

 

Lexa followed Clarke out of their tent asking, “Why would the ground need a hug?”

 

Clarke went on to explain what she meant and she could see Lexa holding back her laughter as they continued on their stroll through the tents. _Someday Lexa, someday I will get you to show more emotion._ She thought to herself as they made their way toward a hill that Lexa was a little worried about. Not that she would say anything but Clarke could see it on her face. It was small, but there. Only a trained eye could see it.


	4. Chapter 4

It was a couple of days later and by now all other clans had left the area outside Mount Weather. The only clan left was Lexa’s people, the tree people as well as the sky people. Today was the day that they were going to figure out where they were going to go. Were they going to go their separate ways now that the reason the alliance was created had been fulfilled or were they going to join up and live somewhere together? Maybe go back to Tondc and build a new city to include both traditions or go back to the ark and build around that.

 

Lexa walked out of her tent and let the smell of the cool fall air surround her in the wee hours of the morning. The sun was just beginning to peak over the trees and she could see some frost covering the grass below her feet. Winter would be there in the coming weeks and she knew it. They needed to decide where they were going to go as soon as possible so that they had enough time to prepare for the cold months.

 

Looking around she could see other warriors awake and wandering around the area of tents. Some were training fist to fist combat, some were training in the art of sword fighting, others were getting ready to go out and hunt. There were a few sky people amongst those warriors eager to learn the grounder knowledge and other sky people lingered in the distance curious to learn but only wanting to watch. She hoped that soon their people would be considered as one people and not sky and grounder. That there wouldn’t be fear to ask to train; it would just be accepted because even though the grounders had the knowledge of fighting, the sky people had the technology.

 

The idea that they would be able to communicate with their camp while out on a hunt was something none of them could have dreamed of. Instead of going out for a hunt and then coming back to devastation. They would be able to know something was wrong and go back because as good as their horns were; the problem with them was that if someone used them it wasn’t just their people that would know. It would be everyone else. Things like walkie-talkies would help with this problem. There might be far less death in their villages with this type of technology.

 

For once, in a very long time since before the alliance was forged Lexa was free to go about her daily routine. In all of her years of being the commander, she could never allow herself much time for any of her old routine because she always had to have a guard with her at all times. Now, with the war being won there wasn’t a whole lot of protecting that she needed. Sure her guards still kept tabs on her but they weren’t there next to her on a daily basis. She was free to move around as she pleased. Today was one of those days and she was going to take advantage.

 

As part of her routine, she found a clearing not too far away from her tent that she could use to focus her mind. In the old language, it was referred to as ‘Tai Chi,’ a form of martial arts that involved a series of slow movements that focused the mind and breathing. Anya had taught it too her at a young age and ever since then it had become a part of her routine. Not just because it focused her mind, but also because it kept a small memory of her old trainer alive in her.

 

Since she was alone and still couldn’t remove her swords because of old habit of needing them just in case, she kept them on as she breathed in and out on each and every movement. Her arm splicing through the air, her legs keeping on pace, she felt the most at peace here. Closing her eyes made it that much more calm as she could feel the leaves cracking below her feet, the wisp of the fall breeze blowing through her hair, and the movement of others around her. Slowly she felt the presence of other warriors joining her in her movements. She did not open her eyes; she just continued to move because she knew who it was. She knew it was her warriors. No sky person had dared join in yet, this was their thing and their thing alone for now. There were clearly eyes on them, they knew that. They knew that the sky people had not seen them do something so soothing. It was always about fighting, it was never about slow movements. Each warrior had their own way to focus their mind and this form was Lexa’s. She had always used this form of training to help her focus on the task at hand. It didn’t matter what the problem was, she knew that these movements would help her rebalance herself so that she could make the decision she needed to.

 

She wanted to believe that she was ready for the coming meeting; she hoped that it would go the way she wanted. However, there was still a part of her that feared the worst, feared that the sky people would want to part ways. That she would have to say goodbye to the woman that she was falling for. The woman that had helped her start to feel again, start to open herself up again. She hadn’t done that since Costia was killed. Her heart had been barricaded up, walls built high around her heart but in recent weeks those walls were starting to break down. They were starting to crack and she could feel the feelings she’d been hiding away come back. She wanted to succumb to them, she wanted to express those feelings to the sky leader but she couldn’t. She had to hold back, she had to keep them to herself because even if she wanted them so bad, she would always keep true to her honour. Love had always been sacred to her, she knew that, and that was why she had decided not to push. Clarke needed time and Lexa was going to give it to her. No matter how much time she needed, Lexa knew she would wait, she would wait for Clarke to be ready.

 

Several minutes to maybe an hour went by before she opened her eyes again feeling refreshed and strong. Looking around she noticed quite quickly at the following she had created. There were several tens of warriors moving in sync with each other as she stood there. Planning her next move, she found the best route to get out of the big circle and made her way to the next area. As she did so, she could feel eyes trained on her. It wasn’t new to her; the sky people always watched them because they were curious about the grounder tradition. So she ignored it and kept walking over to where Indra was standing looking upon their warriors.

 

“Commander,” Indra spoke before looking back at their warriors.

 

“How is the training going?” Lexa asked looking at the warriors and not Indra.

 

“As well as can be expected after winning a war. A few are still banged up but they are keeping up.” She stated knowing that her commander wanted to know the inner workings of each of her warriors. Just in case she needed to ride out quickly.

 

“Have room for one more?” This time Lexa looked from her warriors to Indra as she removed the sword from her back and side and placed them on the ground nearby Indra.

 

The warriors nearby stopped for a moment as they heard what their commander had just asked. This was the fourth time this week that the commander had asked to join their training. It wasn’t this often that they had the pleasure to train with her. So each and every time she had come they were surprised by it. They obviously knew that their commander trained because she wouldn’t be as good as she was if she didn’t train but it wasn’t with those that were training that she did it with. In the past, it was always with her generals only.

 

Indra a little wide eyed, nodded, “Of course.”

 

Lexa let a little smirk grace her lips as she moved into the area with her other warriors, “So who today is going to try and defeat me?” Her words were filled with both a playful and intimidating tone that got the other warriors around her riled up. She put up her fists ready for some fist to fist combat today. Tomorrow maybe it would be sword fighting but today she had a meeting and didn’t want to look too bad.

 

Without warning one of them took a swing at her from the right side of her, but she was smarter than that, she grabbed his arm and swung him to the ground in one swift move. Another came from behind and she used his momentum to flip him over her. The scrawny little girl took on several bigger men in swift moves not taking very many hits as she did it. They knew not to take it easy either because they knew that if they did, the commander would look at them as weak. She was as much a warrior as any of them were, if not more. She could hold her own against any of them and they knew that.

 

They all knew that the commander was chosen because the last one’s spirit was transferred to her. She didn’t get this role on looks. No, she got this role because of strength of spirit. The elders saw something in her that they pinpointed as being the essence of the previous leader. That’s how she was chosen and tested upon.

 

Bouncing from foot to foot with her fists up to cover her face, she looked upon her warriors, “Is that all you got?” She could see some sky people walking away as they realized that this was going to go the same way each and every time. It was clear that no one was going to take out the commander. However, she could still feel eyes on her. In the distance, she could spot someone that looked to be watching her but she wasn’t sure. She would have asked them to join the training but it was clear from how far they were that they did not wish to train.

 

Another warrior took a swing at her and she was able to block the attack pretty easily and lay a swing to his stomach. He crippled down dropping his hands to his knees from the sudden loss of air the blow caused. Someone went to trip Lexa but she was too quick and hopped over the leg before swinging her left leg around to connect with the warrior’s face knocking him back.

 

A smirk crossed her face when she had realized after about an hour of combat that no one dared come near her. This was how it went each and every day. She would train with them until no one tried to fight her anymore. Sometimes she was there for hours; other times it was a couple of minutes. It really depended on the determination of the other warriors.

 

Lexa made her way back over to Indra to pick up her swords, “I think they could use more training.”

 

“Yes commander,” she responded with a swift nod.

 

Looking around now, she could see more of the camp waking up and she knew that the meeting would be starting soon. However, she could still feel eyes on her. In the past, no sky person watched her the entire time she did her routine so she was curious to know if it was curiosity or not. At first, she thought about just walking right up to this person and confronting them but she thought she’d have a little fun with it. So she decided to make her way to toward the Mount Weather compound. Like she suspected, the person followed her…

 

Meanwhile Clarke walked out of Lexa’s tent in search of the commander herself. She was hoping to get a glimpse of Lexa doing some training. To see sweat glisten on her toned muscles as she fought her way through warrior after warrior. That’s what Clarke wanted to see. She still wasn’t ready for a relationship but she liked watching the woman get all sweaty from a work-out. Unfortunately, she’d only caught it once that week because each day it was different and Clarke couldn’t figure out the woman’s schedule. Some days Lexa got up really early and other days she trained in the evening.

 

As she made her way over to where Lexa should be training she noticed the commander walking in the direction of mount weather. Just as she was about to call out to her, she noticed someone falling Lexa from a distance. Since she could recognize who it was, she thought she’d practice her stealth and follow both of them to see what was going to occur. She didn’t follow behind them both; she walked to the far left of both of them in the trees. Far enough to hopefully not be spotted by either of them but close enough that she could hear anything that occurred between the two.

 

Clarke followed until she saw the commander get to the door and then turn around.

 

Lexa turned around and looked to the trees again. She could still feel the presence of someone watching her so she knew that this person obviously was following her for a reason so she walked back the way she came. After a minute or two of walking, she picked up speed until she was full out running.

 

Clarke kept track of Lexa running through the trees; she could see the person that was following her stumbling behind her trying to keep up. She could even see the moment when that person was sure they’d lost the commander when all of a sudden…

 

Lexa came out from behind a tree, “Why are you following me?”

 

The guy stopped in his tracks and almost fell backward on the ground in the process, “I.. uh..”

 

“Well... get it out!” She was not big on the waiting.

 

He swiped his black bangs out of his face, “I’m not—follow…following you.”

 

“Really? I would say that you are. Who are you anyway?” Lexa asked seeing how nervous the little man was in front of her. She could tell that this person was most definitely a sky person. None of her people dressed the way he did.

 

“I – I’m Monty. One of… uh… Clarke’s friends,” he smiled nervously.

 

Realization hit Lexa as to who this was, “Yes, you are the one helping Raven.”

 

He nodded, “Yes.”

 

“So?”

 

“So… What?” He asked not sure where this was going.

 

“Why are you following me?” She asked again getting irritated that he was keeping her from the meeting she was to be at. Not that the meeting would start without her. She was the commander but still.

 

Clarke in the woods off to the left of them was trying to contain her laughter from emitting and giving herself away.

 

Monty wanted to look away but the piercing look from the commander in front of him was making it too hard to look away. “I—well I -- Um--- You see I---“

 

“I have somewhere to be, if you are not going to answer me then I might as well leave now,” Lexa began to turn away when the man’s hand grabbed her right arm. The commander turned back very slowly looking from his hand on her arm to his face and back again.

 

The stern look on the commander’s face made Monty immediately let go, “Sorry.”

 

“Have you learned how to speak? I do not have all day.” Lexa was getting even more irritated by the second. _Where is this conversation going?_ Lexa thought to herself.

 

“Right,” He took a deep breath to get his confidence back. Well any he could muster anyways before he answered, “Um… I heard from some people that... that you’re not seeing anyone.” _Actually, it was just Clarke but she doesn’t need to know that._ He thought trying to decipher her reaction.

 

“Seeing anyone? What does that mean?” Lexa asked confused by his phrase. “I have seen many people today. You are the most recent one I have seen.”

 

Monty shook his head and waved his hands to add emphasis, “No, that’s not what I meant. I meant, you’re not dating anyone.” He could tell from her look that she was still not getting it. “Okay, um how can I describe this so you’ll know what I mean?” After a moment, a thought comes to mind, “Oh, you know how Octavia and Lincoln are together? As in, they are a couple?”

 

Lexa nodded as she thought of the possibility of her and Clarke being like them, “Yes.”

“You, from what I’ve heard are not with anyone. You aren’t a couple with anyone.” Monty said that last part feeling a little repetitive but he was speaking to someone who didn’t obviously grasp Basic English words and needed to dumb it down.

 

 _I guess, he’s right, I’m not with anyone, not yet._ She thought to herself realizing just then how much she cared for Clarke. She would move mountains to see her if needed. “Why do you ask?”

 

“Well, I’m single… you’re single…” His confidence was coming back more. “I thought maybe we could go out on a date?” He looked at her with hopeful eyes.

 

“Date? What does that mean?” She asked again wondering about the terminology.

 

Monty’s head slumped down on his shoulders before looking up again, “A date is where two people hang out, go to dinner, stuff like that. Maybe a goodnight kiss at the end.” He suggested as he tried to explain even though he wasn’t an expert. It’s not like he went on a lot of dates on the ark.

 

With no hesitation what’s so ever, Lexa responded with a harsh, “No.” In that second, Lexa could swear she heard what could only sound like snorting in the distance to her left. Deciding it wasn’t a threat she looked back at the scrawny little man.

 

After all that work of explaining, he was not expecting that as his shoulders dropped in defeat, “Could I possibly ask why?”

 

Lexa let out a breath through her nose in annoyance, “If you must know, I have my eye on someone else.” She almost let a smile appear at the thought of who that was before stopping it as she only let her emotions show to one person and one person alone.

 

“I see… So I have no chance then?” He asked one more time.

 

Lexa just nodded in confirmation.

 

“Alright then, I guess I’ll be going then.” He walked away in defeat. It’s not like he had any feelings for her at all but he was hoping he’d be able to get at least a date out of it. _I guess grounder tradition is very different from ours._ He thought as he walked back toward camp.

 

Lexa did the same and made her way back toward the camp.

 

XXXXXXXXXXX

 

As soon as she saw Lexa start to make her way toward the camp, she did the same. She waited until they were quite close to the camp before making herself known and walking up next to Lexa. “Hey.”

 

Lexa knew from the voice that it was Clarke but she looked over anyways just for a second to see that smile and then she looked back to the path. “You did well. I almost did not notice you in the woods.”

 

“I don’t know what you’re talking about Lexa. I wasn’t in the woods,” Clarke defended herself.

 

“I could notice your laugh anywhere. That was you in the woods,” Lexa pointed out.

 

Clarke shook her head from side to side, “Nope, must have been someone else because I have no idea what you are talking about.”

 

Lexa gave her a knowing look, “Okay, well if you know who that was; tell them that they did well. If they would not have laughed, I would not have known they were there.”

 

“Again, I have no idea who you are referring to so I’m not sure how I could pass on that message.” Clarke was sticking to her guns. She was not going to back down to the commander. No way did she want to admit that she heard Lexa tell Monty that she has her eye on someone, that someone no doubt being her. Trying to change the subject, Clarke asked, “What were you doing in the woods anyways?”

 

“I was testing to see if the person following me was actually following me.” She stated without question.

 

“And were they?” Clarke asked trying to look like she didn’t already know the answer.

 

Lexa nodded, “Yes. One of your friends named Monty was following me.”

 

Clarke quirked an eyebrow, “That’s strange. Why would he be following you?” Then a thought occurred to her and she decided to tease that hard exterior of the commander, “Awe… do you have a secret admirer?” She looked at Lexa all gushy eyed.

 

The commander looked at Clarke very confused, “I do not know if I want to know what that means but he wanted to be a couple with me.”

 

“You mean he wanted to date you?” The blonde asked already knowing the answer already and keeping her laugh contained.

 

“I believe that is the word he used, yes.” Lexa noticed them getting closer to her tent where the meeting would be taking place.

 

“What did you say?” Clarke asked knowing what the response would be but wanted to hear it from Lexa to see how she’d say it.

 

Lexa saw something in Clarke in that moment that she couldn’t quite peg. _Was she eager or maybe looking for assurance?_ She knew just as much as Clarke did that Clarke was in the woods. She didn’t understand why Clarke would not admit it but she knew that it was the blonde and chose to respect Clarke’s secrecy on the matter. On top of this, Lexa also knew that Clarke had some kind of feelings for her otherwise their kiss from about a week ago wouldn’t have lasted as long as it did. The blonde would have stopped it sooner.

 

Clarke also knew that Lexa most definitely had feelings for her because Lexa was the one to initiate the kiss. Lexa’s hard exterior may have cracked in that moment because of what Clarke had said hours beforehand but the kiss was still something she had control over. Clarke knew as well as anyone that the commander didn’t go around kissing people whenever she pleased. So she knew that Lexa had feelings for her for that matter alone. The anticipation of waiting for Lexa to explain what she said to Monty about why she couldn’t ‘date’ him was so mind numbing even if Clarke already knew what Lexa said.

 

Saying one has feelings for another to someone who has nothing to do with the situation was one thing, but to turn around and try to say that one thing to the one you were referring too? That’s a million times harder and Lexa knew that. She knew she had to choose her words carefully and she knew that anything she may or may not say could affect the sky leader standing in front of her.

 

Lexa thought about her words ever so carefully before she responded with, “I told Monty-“

 

“Hey, what are you two doing out here? I was just going to come find you. You’re late for the meeting,” Kane looked between the two leaders wondering why they would be standing right outside the tent staring at each other. It was no secret to him that these two leaders were close but in this moment he was starting to see that there might just be more than meets the eye.

 

Lexa shook herself out of her reverie and looked away from Clarke to Kane, “I’m sorry Marcus of the sky people. We were just on our way in.”

 

“Yeah, sorry, I- uh – got a little lost?” She tried to state but it came out more like a question as she tried to look Kane in the eyes but was failing miserably as she could tell as well as he could that her lie was pretty lame.

 

He squinted his eyes as he looked at Clarke a little confused, “Right.” After a beat, he realized they weren’t going to mention any more on the subject, “Well…” He stepped back and held the cloth open for the two leaders to get in, “Shall we?”  

 

Lexa just nodded as she put out a hand gesturing for Clarke to go in before her and then she followed right after with Marcus behind her.

 

Inside the tent there were a few representatives from the Ark including Kane, Abby and of course Clarke as well as a few of Lexa’s generals including Indra who was asked to join. Octavia and the other seconds weren’t privy to the meeting as they were to continue their training with the other warriors and keep watch for any threats.

 

Some of Lexa’s warriors had moved one of the tables into the center of the tent so that they could all gather around it to make their decisions.

 

Lexa stood at the front of the table on the ground in front of her throne room chair, “As you all know, this meeting has come together to decide the fate of where our two people will go from here.” She looked around the table to the other recipients as they nodded in agreement. To her left was Indra, Ryder and a few other generals. Across from Lexa was Clarke and to her left, was Abby with Kane standing to the right of Lexa. Unfortunately, they couldn’t get more people from the ark as most were helping get the remaining technology out of mount weather.

 

“The first piece of business is determining if our two people will stick together.” Clarke looked at Lexa confused by that statement. “The alliance was built to win the war against the mountain men. We have done so. Now it’s a question of whether we part ways or if we stick together and build a home together.” Lexa explained dreading the answer that may come out of one of the arker’s mouths. She was pretty sure she knew where Clarke stood but she couldn’t be completely sure.

 

Abby was the first to speak, “Well…” She dragged on, “I think maybe we should-“

 

“Mom! If you are going to say that we should separate our alliance, then there is the door!” She raised her voice as she turned and pointed to the opening to the tent when a thought occurred to her… “Well, it’s not a door… It’s-it’s more like a - a cloth…” Everyone was now looking at her confused, “You get what I mean!” She defended her actions. “The point is… is I have come to know Lexa’s people. They listen to me… Well… only because Lexa told them to….” Pause. “But that’s not the point. We would not be here right now without her people and it wouldn’t make sense for us to go our separate ways now. Besides, if you make me choose…” She briefly looked at Lexa who was intently watching the blonde’s every move, before looking straight at her mom. “I will choose them over our people.”

 

“Clarke! That’s enough.” Lexa took her focus from Clarke and put it on Abby who interrupted Clarke’s tirade. “What I was going to say was, I think we should stick together.”

 

“You were?” Now Clarke felt embarrassed and hoped that the blush she could feel creeping up her neck and onto her cheeks was not very visible.

 

Abby nodded, “Yes. You all know the ground,” she motioned Lexa and the other side of the table, “And we have our technology. It only makes sense for us to stick together. If there are more reapers, we can cure them but we can only make it so far on our knowledge. Your knowledge,” she looked directly at Lexa, “Is what will help us survive on the ground. We can only do so much…”

 

“I agree with Abby,” Kane put his two cents in. “We worked together to win this war. I think we can work together to build a life together. There may be struggles along the way but I know we can get past them. What do you say?” He looked at Indra directly. He knew that they had their differences with her so he was more concerned about her than he was anyone else.

 

Indra’s jaw clenched as she thought about the proposal, “On one condition.”

 

“Name it,” Kane responded right away.

 

“When we hunt for food, we use our weapons: Swords, spears or bow and arrow. You may not use your guns.” Indra stated, she did not suggest as this was her bargain and she wasn’t backing down. She did not explain as she would never explain her motives. The only person she would ever explain why she did what she did was to the commander. That was it.

 

Abby and Kane look at each other for a moment showing an understanding with no words before Abby responded, “Alright. You have a deal.”

 

“Then it is settled. Commander, I will be awaiting your order on when to leave.” She made her way for the tents exit and left. The rest of the grounder generals followed Indra leaving Lexa, Clarke, Abby and Kane alone.

 

Clarke watched as the passed her afraid to try and stop them so she waited until they were gone and then looked to Lexa across the table, “Where are they going? Don’t we still have some decisions to make?”

 

Lexa nodded, “We do.”

 

“Then where are they going? Don’t they want to be a part of it?” Clarke was still so very confused by everything that had just happened.

 

The commander shook her head, “They were here to find out if we were keeping the alliance or not. That was it. All we have left to discuss is where we are going.”

 

It was Abby’s turn to speak up, “Shouldn’t they have say in that? It’s their lives too.”

 

“The truth is, my people do not have anywhere to go. Without the alliance we would have been forced to go to where Tondc was and rebuild. With the alliance staying, we need to decide if we are still doing that or if we are going somewhere else. My people are well aware that wherever we go, we will need to rebuild. It does not matter to them where we go. As long as we have a source of food and water, we can build anew.” Lexa explained the fact of her people to the other three in the room.

 

Kane chose to answer this one, “If it is of no inconvenience to your people, I believe the ark is where our people,” motions to Clarke and Abby, “would prefer to go. Only because we can’t exactly move it and it has benefits that a structure found in the woods does not. We have a medical bay for injuries and a few holding cells for prisoners if needed.”

 

Lexa nodded, “Then it is decided. The ark is where we shall-“

 

 _“Commander, Commander… Come quick, a challenge has been made!”_ One of Lexa’s warriors barged into the tent yelling in Trigedasleng.

 

Lexa’s brown creased, “Who has been challenged?” She asked looking at the warrior for an answer more concerned for the challenged then explaining what a challenge means to the very clueless looking sky people.

 

“Cyrus has made the challenge and would like to face the challenger when he makes his claim. Come quick!” With that the man ran back out of the tent.

 

The commander followed Kane, Abby and Clarke out of the tent to see Cyrus and a group of her warriors behind him waiting not too far outside the tent. She moved to the front of the pack, to be better heard, _“Who have you challenged?”_ She demanded in her native tongue forgetting for a moment that the sky people were there with her.

 

He nodded to someone in Lexa’s general direction, “You.”

 

Lexa knew he wasn’t looking at her. “I ask again, who have you challenged?” This time with more force, her anger swelling up as she clenched her jaw getting tired of Cyrus’ game.

 

Cyrus smirked as he crossed his arms and took a stance of power because he knew he had all the power in that moment. “I challenge Clarke of the Sky people.” He continued to stare at her knowingly because he knew she had no idea what he meant.  


	5. Chapter 5

Before Clarke could even think about responding, Lexa was speaking, “What is the reason for this?” Anyone in the vicinity could tell that the commander was pissed. It could be seen on her face, the way she stood and especially the way she spoke. Each and every person could see that she wasn’t going to calm down anytime soon either. “I should not have to remind you about the rules behind a challenge.”

 

Cyrus wasn’t going to let their commander sway his determination so he kept that little smug smirk on his face as he responded, “May I speak freely?”

 

The fact that he wanted to speak freely was not sitting well for Lexa, through gritted teeth she said, “If you must!” She gripped the handle of her sword attached to her hip trying to push some of her anger there so that she did not lash out and take matters into her own hands. The one thing holding her back was the fact that if she killed Cyrus, if she disregarded their tradition, she would not live out the night and she knew it.

 

“We all know the type of leader our commander is…” He spoke a bit louder so that everyone in the area could hear. “She’s the type of leader that leads with her head and not her heart. She thinks about the bigger picture. If letting a missile hit the village we all grew up in was going to help us win this war, then that’s what she was going to do.”

 

“I do not see how my decisions are reasons for you challenging the leader of the sky people!” She all but yelled. Her focus was on him and him alone, she did not dare look at Clarke or the other sky people for she feared that they would fear her. She was not someone to cross and her anger was very evident in her voice.

 

Ignoring her, he continued,” When we all found out that the commander knew of the missile strike to Tondc, we weren’t surprised because that’s the leader we already knew we had. Clarke on the other hand,” he pointed to her. “That is not the type of leader she is.”

 

Everyone in that area looked to Clarke except Lexa, she still had her eyes trained on the man challenging Clarke.

 

“Get on with it, Cyrus!” Lexa demanded.

 

“Since the alliance was created, since the moment we joined forces with the sky people, there have been moments where Clarke has proven what kind of leader she is. She, unlike our commander leads with her heart and not her head...”

 

Clarke looked at him knowingly because she was well aware that that was how she led. Everything was always about how it would affect the people around her. It wasn’t about her, or the mission, it was always about the people that would be affected. She couldn’t help but to agree with Cyrus at his statement.

 

 “I, for one, am glad for that because my friend here would not be alive if it were not for her.” He motioned to the man to his right. “Had Clarke not stopped the commander from letting Gustus beat him to death, he would not be here right not. Not to say that we aren’t aware that any one of us could die at any second, we all know that but in that moment she showed the type of leader that she is. She goes out of her way to make sure that people are saved to the best of her ability.”

 

Lexa had enough, “Cyrus! If your next sentence is not your reason, your challenge will be forfeit.”

 

He could see that the commander was serious and even though in this moment he felt like he had the power, he knew that the commander was still their leader and could do as she pleased, “I challenge Clarke of the sky people because…” He directs his eyesight right at Clarke, “you knew about the missile and you chose to take the easy route. That says to me that your strength of spirit is weak. We do not want a leader that will take an easier route because the one you usually do is too difficult. You have always shown that saving people is your way, yet in a difficult situation, you decided to go against who you are to make it easier on you. Not to say that letting all those people die was easy but that kind of decision is something we would expect from our commander… not you. You lead with your heart over your head, you should have found a way to save a least some people.”

 

“With this claim, have you a backing?” Lexa asked knowing that even though she does not believe in the reason for the challenge she cannot go against their tradition. If he has enough people for his claim, there was nothing she could do about it.

 

He nodded, “Yes, all of these people are for my challenge. Commander, I would not make such a challenge if I did not already have the support I needed for it to happen.”

 

She sighed knowing what she had to do next. Her hard exterior was still there, the anger was still there on the outside, but on the inside… On the inside she was dying. She knew what this meant, what was going to happen and she wished with all of her being that she could do something about it but she couldn’t. This was their way. If they were truly going to join together as one clan, they needed to respect each other’s traditions. If Clarke refused, then Lexa knew that she would have no choice but to break the alliance. She would never be able to see Clarke again. Her options in this matter were both terrible and she hated the words that were about to come out of her mouth. What could have been mistaken as a robot she responded with, “You have met the requirements for a challenge to be made. The challenge has been approved.” There was so much more she wanted to say, but she couldn’t because that wasn’t her. Love was weakness and she made it a point to not show her feelings in any situation. “You made the challenge, when will the challenge happen?”

 

He looked from Clarke to Lexa, “Since she is probably unaware of this tradition, the challenge will happen in seven days on the seventh night.”

 

Lexa swiftly nodded once to indicate it was approved. Her eyes searched the nearby crowd in search of someone particular, “Indra!” She called out.

 

Indra walked up closer to the commander, “Yes.”

 

“I want you to get our people ready to leave within the hour.” She commanded.

 

“Understood.” Indra responded, before looking toward Octavia and the other seconds not too far away. “Octavia,” once Indra was sure she got the girl’s attention, “Get word out to everyone. We are leaving within the hour.”

 

Octavia nodded in the distance as the other seconds all scattered in separate directions. Indra did the same walking away from the commander.

 

Lexa turned on her foot and walked back toward Clarke, Abby and Kane, “Come with me.” Instead of walking back into the tent, Lexa walked with them over to a clearing not too far away before turning back to them expecting some questions.

 

She knew this would have to do because her tent needed to be deconstructed for them to leave so she couldn’t exactly be inside it when it occurred. Being out in the open would have to do.

 

“Lexa, what is a challenge?” Clarke was the first to speak. She didn’t care about formalities in this moment; she just wanted to know what was happening in seven days.

 

Lexa thought for a moment to figure out the best way to describe what a challenge was, “A challenge is used to test someone’s strength of spirit. I have had my fair share since taking command. Leaders are usually the only ones who get challenged because of the change in rules.”

 

“Change in rules?” Kane asked.

 

“Yes, many years ago challenges were done for the most absurd of reasons so the leaders back then decided to make them more formal. The challenger needed to have a clear reason for why they were doing it and most of the clan had to agree with it for it to happen.” She explained to the best of her ability making sure to skip the most important part as she wasn’t ready to come to terms with that particular part. If the challenge was against anyone else, it would have been easy for her to say it but because it was Clarke. The girl that she had developed feelings for, the girl she was waiting for to be ready; she could not say the words that needed to be said. “The leader of the clan makes the final decision but because all of the rules were met I could not go against our tradition.”

 

“Okay, but what does it entail?” Clarke was not getting the answers she wanted.

 

Lexa didn’t respond. This was what she didn’t want to talk about. She knew she had to but she still didn’t want to say it. It made it too real. “If someone is challenged, they must prove their strength of spirit to the challenger. They must prove that they are worthy of the position they have. That even with a small slipup, one is still the leader they always were…”

 

“Lexa!” Clarke was getting frustrated now. She could see that Lexa was avoiding her question and it didn’t make her feel any better. It made her feel worse. “Just tell me. What happens in a challenge?”

 

Lexa looked over to the trees and watched the wind gently blow the leaves from the branches. For a moment she felt calm before she looked back to the scared leader in front of her, “A challenge is a fight to the death.” There, she finally said it. The one thing she was dreading. She knew she had to say it but saying it out loud made it so much more real.

 

Clarke’s eyes go wide, “The—the death? I’m going to have to win a fight against him.”

 

“There has to be another way,” Abby begged looking from Clarke who clearly wasn’t having issues dealing with the news to looking over to Lexa.

 

Lexa clenched her jaw, “There is.”

 

“What is it?” Clarke’s eyes open up wide in hopes of getting out of this. It wasn’t that she didn’t think she could do it. She knew that with proper training she maybe could do it but if there was any way to get out of it, she would take it. Being a leader was not a choice for her. She got shoved into the role so for her to fight for something she didn’t want in the first place was a little hard to think about.

 

“The challenge is a part of my tradition, of grounder tradition. You are of the sky people.” Lexa stopped for just a moment not wanting to say what she needed to say. The thing that she knew could forever keep Clarke away from her.

 

“Being from the sky changes things,” Kane asked?

 

Lexa let go of a breath she was not aware she was holding in, “There is no doubt in my mind that the reason Cyrus waited until he did to make his claim, was because before today we had not decided if our two people would stick together or not.” Everyone looked at her with hopeful eyes. “When Indra and the other generals left the tent, they would have told everyone that our two people were going to become one which included our traditions. If you truly do not want to take part in the challenge… our alliance would need to end.” Her face would not betray her in front of Abby and Kane. She kept it stern and focused at the task at hand. On the inside… she could not explain how she felt. “We would need to go our separate ways. You cannot be a part of our clan, if you do not take part in our traditions…”

 

Abby didn’t know what to say to that. She and Kane had done a lot of terrible things in the past to stay alive so they understood how surviving worked. They also knew that even with the war being won, it did not mean that these kinds of traditions would all of a sudden go away. There were still other threats in this world. So they waited on what Clarke would say because in the end the decision was hers to make. Stay and fight or leave.

 

At first Clarke was scared to make the decision, she didn’t want this kind of choice but she knew that it was still hers to make. She had to decide if staying to risk her life so that their two people could stay together was worth her potentially losing her life to do it. In the end, the deciding factor really came down to her feelings for Lexa. If she were to decide to leave so that she did not do the challenge that would mean never seeing Lexa again, if she chose to stay Lexa would stay in her life. Whether that meant Lexa was in it for seven more days or a lifetime.

 

“I’ll do it,” Clarke said with determination. She wasn’t going to look weak. If she was going to take the chance to do this, she needed to look the part. She couldn’t look scared.

 

“Okay…” Lexa was both relieved and sad that Clarke said she’d do it. She was relieved because this meant she wouldn’t have to say goodbye to Clarke for forever but she was also sad because this meant that in seven days she may have to say goodbye anyways. With proper training, Lexa knew Clarke could win this challenge but there was still a teeny little part of her that worried for the blonde’s safety. For the last couple of weeks, keeping Clarke safe was always her second priority over her people and for once she wasn’t going to be able to protect Clarke and that killed her. There was literally nothing she could do to stop this. All she could do was train her. “We’ll start training once we get back to the ark,” she tried to find her strength in her voice.

 

Kane and Abby took the hint and decided to walk away to get all of their stuff packed up to leave. They left the two leaders there to speak alone.

 

“Clarke, are you sure you want to do this?” Lexa asked once she was sure Abby and Kane were out of listening reach.

 

Clarke nodded, “Yes, if we are to join our people’s we need to be able to take part in both traditions, even ones as horrible as this one. If this is how I’ll get their respect back, then this is what I have to do. Can I ask you something though?” She looked a little unsure of what she wanted to ask.

 

Lexa nodded, “Yes.”

 

“In the off chance that I lose, what happens?” Clarke asked not sure if she wanted to know the answer.

 

“Clarke, you cannot think like that. If you think you are going to lose before you even get to the fight, you will lose. That is the first lesson we learn as children.” She tried to explain to the blonde.

 

Clarke shrugged, “I don’t think I’ll lose. I just want to know. If Cyrus wins, will he be the new leader because my people won’t follow him.” She reasoned knowing she was right. Her mom would just take over.

 

Lexa shook her head, “No, he will not take your place by my side.” At first she did not notice what that implied and decided to just move on in hopes that Clarke missed the implication. “The challenge is purely a test, nothing more. He would not become a leader. We would just be down a leader until a new one was appointed.”  

 

Clarke nodded in understanding, “One more thing, can you do me one favor?” She looked to Lexa waiting for an answer.

 

“Anything,” Lexa knew she would move mountains if it meant helping Clarke somehow. She would do anything for the blonde.

 

“Don’t hold back,” was all Clarke said.

 

Lexa looked at her confused, “Hold back on what?” Maybe she was too focused on the emotion of it all to know what she was talking about.

 

“You need to push me in training; I do not want to go into that challenge without knowing full well that I can do it. There needs to be no doubt, okay?” Clarke asked the commander knowing full well that Lexa was the one to train her. She’d seen her train with her warriors before, Lexa was always the one to beat. If she wanted anyone to train her, it was Lexa.

 

“I would have it no other way.” After a brief pause Lexa tried to make Clarke feel a little better, “I am not sure your people would listen to me if you died so you need to be prepared.”

 

Clarke let a smile break free, “Wait, were you trying to be funny just then?”

 

“Only if it made you feel better,” Lexa tried to keep her strong posture but was failing miserably under the gaze of one sky leader.

 

The sky leader couldn’t keep her smile under wraps anymore as she couldn’t help but to show teeth in a grin, “You did try to be funny! Wow, I think the big tough commander is actually a little softie.” She jutted out her bottom lip for extra effect.

 

“I have no idea what you are talking about Clarke,” she denied as she walked past Clarke toward what’s left of the camp as most of it had been deconstructed by now.

 

Clarke turned around and caught up to the quick commander, “I think you know exactly what I’m talking about.” She eyed her from the left of the commander just as they came up to the horses that were awaiting them.

 

Lexa ignored Clarke and looked upon Indra standing by the horses, “Is everything ready to go?”

 

Indra nodded, “Yes commander.”

 

“Alright, then let’s move out. We need to get there before darkness.” Lexa commanded as she moved to get up on her horse.

 

Clarke followed suit and got up on the horse that was next to Lexa’s and within a couple more minutes they were all riding out of this area back toward where the ark was.


	6. Day 1

_DAY 1_

 

It was the first day of training. Clarke was both excited and nervous because even though she knew that she needed to learn how to fight, she also knew that it wouldn’t be easy to learn. She didn’t have several weeks or months to learn, she had seven days. Seven days to either learn it or die. It was a harsh reality and she knew it but she also knew that Lexa wasn’t going to sugar coat it. That wasn’t her way. She was all about the facts and the fact was that Clarke could die in 7 days. These could be her last moments on this Earth and she knew it.

 

The day before, they had arrived to the ark with both of their people, the grounders and the sky people. It was late into the evening when they all arrived and even though the grounders knew they would need to make their tents in darkness, some of the sky people helped as well.

 

It was a nice sight for both of the leaders to see their people working together for a common goal. The sky people could have chosen to just go in the ark and go about their own stuff but no, they chose to come out of the walls of the ark and help the grounders set up. They all knew that their people would be co-mingling together now. They all knew that Clarke and Lexa had decided to stick together, keep the alliance afloat so they knew that they had to make it work.

 

Everyone knew that this was just temporary however as winter was coming and they needed to build actual structures to live in. Otherwise they would not survive the coming cold months in their tents. They did it once before but the tree people barely lived out the winter. From that point forward, the tree people made it a point to always have built houses for each of their people to live in. She’d never fully been a part of the building process because this all came about when she was just a child. However, she made it her mission to make sure any new comers were treated the same after she took over. This would not change now that the sky people were combining with hers. She hoped that down the road maybe some of the sky people would join with the grounders together and not be separated the way that they are now.

 

As soon as the sun peeked over the trees, the grounders were out and about working on building better houses. They wanted to use building materials from the Tondc wreckage and even from mount weather, and the arker’s wanted to use wood. It was an interesting thing for Lexa to watch in the distance.

 

She had chosen an area just outside the area of where her new village was being built, for the training area with Clarke. She could have chosen to do the training in the area that was being built in the middle of their combined village for the later challenge but she didn’t want Clarke to have any distractions. Here, Lexa could keep watch on both the ark and her new village.

 

Clarke was on her way over to where Lexa was standing watching her watch the structures being built. The sky leader could see the look of awe on Lexa’s face, it was clear that the commander did not know anyone was watching her because she was letting her face do things she never did if someone was watching. Clarke knew that the second she made herself known, Lexa’s face would go back to a stern look.

 

And it did, “Hey,” Clarke made herself known as she walked closer to the commander.

 

Lexa’s whole body language changed within a second, she straightened her posture, and she stopped gazing in awe at the work being done as she looked upon Clarke with a straight face, “Are you ready to start?”

 

Clarke nodded, “Yes. As ready as I’ll ever be.” She tried to say it with as much confidence as she could but she failed miserably and she knew Lexa could tell.

 

“You do not need to be afraid, Clarke. I have seen you fight before, you can do this.” Lexa tried to instill at least some confidence in the leader in front of her. Moving to the side, Clarke was able to see the weapons laid out on a table right behind the commander. “These are the weapons I’ll be training you on.”

 

Clarke looked upon all of the weapons in awe. She knew the grounders had a lot but she didn’t know it was this many. She recognized the throwing star that a scout had used to kill one of her people while they tried to escape the impending grounder attack. Of course, she’d seen several swords, and in front of her she could see a long blade sword, a shorter sword probably to be held on the back as well as a dagger. To the side of all of these, she could also see a long bow with a set of arrows. “Why would I need to learn about a bow and arrow? Wouldn’t that hinder me in a fight because he could use it against me?”

 

“Good eye.” Lexa couldn’t help the smile that appeared on her face as the realization came over her that training Clarke may not be as difficult as she had once thought. “The bow and arrow are there so that when I take you out in the woods to see what you’ve learned we could do some hunting as well.”

 

Clarke reached out and picked up the shorter sword, feeling the weight of the sword but still being able to hold it up like it one of the movies she’d see on the ark.

 

Lexa watched Clarke look at all of the weapons, her hand reaching out to touch one handle or feel the material of the metal on another. It was an interesting sight for Lexa because this was her life. She’d only ever known weapons, whether they be swords, sticks, traps, bow and arrow, her life revolved around weapons. That’s all she ever knew, it was a part of her life like Raven and her tools. She never needed to stop and look upon them the way that Clarke was now. Sure she always examined them to make sure they were up to par but that was it. It wasn’t about the beauty of the blade. It wasn’t about the fun of it. In this moment, Lexa grew a new unfound appreciation for the weapons in front of them.

 

Trying to pull herself out of her reverie she asked, “Clarke, have you had any training in this kind of fighting?”

 

Clarke chuckled, “Not by choice.”

 

Lexa looked at her confused, “Explain.”

 

“When Anya and I escaped Mount Weather together, originally I was her prisoner,” Clarke began to explain.

 

“You were?” She looked upon the sky leader waiting for this to be explained.

 

Clarke nodded, “Yes, that’s how I’ve gotten so good at moving in the woods without leaving a trail. Anya had made me follow her steps with every move. Stepping where she stepped, moving where she moved. I learned it from her. We were trying to stay undetected from the mountain men as she tried to take me back to… well you. She said she needed a prize.”

 

Now Lexa was even more confused, “You said Anya had died. If she was bringing you back to me, what happened to her?” She had never learned the full story of what happened to her mentor and in this moment she wanted to know.

 

“Well, long story short I ended up getting the upper hand over her and made her my prisoner once we were close enough to where the drop ship is so that I was confident I could get back by myself. Once at the dropship, Anya and I had a major fight. Both she and I almost died from it. However, I won in the end. I was able to use a previous injury on her against her and took her out. I was this close…” She used her left thumb and pointer finger to show a small space, “to killing her but Raven’s beacon caught my eye.”

 

“Then how did she die?” Lexa was well aware and impressed that Clarke was able to overpower her mentor so quickly but she still was more focused on how her mentor and friend had died.

 

“My people at the ark shot both her and I while we were on the outskirts of the ark. They thought we were grounders, which makes sense because we were dressed in grounder clothing and were covered in mud. I stayed there with Anya until her dying breath,” She stopped to take a breath remembering that moment so vividly. “I tried,” She paused, “I tried to keep her alive but the wound was too bad. Once she had said yu gonplei ste odon, I knew… I knew she was gone.” Clarke finished the story barely in a whisper before looking away for a moment to wipe the tear that fell from her eye. Even though she and Anya had never seen eye to eye and their relationship was built on fighting and arguing, Clarke still cared for the woman. If she didn’t at least care a little, she wouldn’t have saved her in the mountain in the first place.      

 

Lexa didn’t quite know what to do in this moment. She felt that she should comfort Clarke but she didn’t know how. It wasn’t until this moment that she realized that she and Clarke shared yet another similarity. On top of being leaders, they both had the same mentor even if Clarke’s time with Anya wasn’t so great. The commander could still see that Clarke had learned stuff from her. She wanted to place a hand on Clarke’s shoulder to comfort her but she didn’t know if that would be pushing her or not. Lexa knew from experience for herself that when she was upset about something, she didn’t like to be touched, maybe Clarke didn’t either. She didn’t want to test that theory so she just responded with, “Anya was not very good in expressing her feelings, I am sure that she cared for you at least a little,” she responded with hopeful eyes, a look that only Clarke was privy to see.

 

Clarke smiled, “I highly doubt that but thanks for trying.” She sniffled back her emotions and shook herself trying to rid herself of the emotions she was feeling for her dead… friend? “I thought we were going to be training not rehashing old details long past?” Clarke asked finally being able to make eye contact with the leader next to her.

 

Lexa nodded, “Yes of course. We have seven days to train you on stuff that I learned over my entire lifetime. Stuff Cyrus would have learned over his entire lifetime as well. I believe that you could learn it. You seem like a quick learner.”

 

“Remember…” Clarke got Lexa’s attention from looking at the weapons, “I don’t want you to hold back. I am just another warrior you are training.” She stated not asked, she wanted it to be known that she was as determined as Lexa was to train her.

 

“Clarke, I cannot treat you like another one of my warriors…” She trailed off.

 

Clarke had an idea of what Lexa meant by her statement and decided to reiterate what she had said days ago, “Lexa, I told you I’m not ready for-“

 

Lexa shook her head as she put up her hand to stop Clarke, “That is not what I meant,” As much as she wanted it to mean that, she knew that Clarke would come to her when she was ready. “In normal circumstances, while training a warrior, they can get seriously injured if they do not keep up. What does not kill you makes you stronger. That has always been our saying. I cannot do that with you.” Lexa tried to explain to the best of her ability. “If you get too injured, then it could hurt your chances of winning the challenge. I will still be training you and it will still be hard but I will not injure you as much as I would another. I do not want to be the reason that you lose. I would not be able to forgive myself if I injured you so bad that you could not fight properly, thus ending your life in the process.” She swallowed nervously hoping that Clarke did not see how she felt about the whole thing. Her world in recent weeks, as much as she tried to deny it, revolved around Clarke and she could not imagine her life without the blonde. She would do everything and anything in her power to protect Clarke and that meant training her as well.        

 

“Okay, then how is this going to work if we can’t fight against each other?” Clarke asked curious to know how training would work if she could not get injured.

 

“Oh, I am still going to fight you. That is how anyone learns; I just will not be as aggressive with you as I would anyone else.” Lexa stated. “I know you have seen me train before, you know how aggressive I can be,” she looked to Clarke knowing that she had seen her a few times. Lexa had seen her watching once or twice since they’d joined forces.

 

This time Clarke doesn’t deny watching Lexa, “That is true. You do not hold back.”

 

Lexa got lost in the moment briefly as she realized that Clarke did not deny she’d been watching her. She wasn’t sure what that meant but she liked the feeling it made her feel in that moment. It had made her skin tingle and this strange feeling in her stomach that she could not describe. Clarke did things to her that she hadn’t felt in years. Not since… Costia.

 

“Right so, first I would like you to pick up the sword you held a moment ago. This is one of my spare blades that I use just in case my current one gets bent or broken,” She looked at Clarke knowingly wondering if Clarke would catch the reference or not.

 

“Would you have rather been killed by a radiation amped gorilla?” Clarke tested catching that Lexa was talking about the fact that Lexa had lost her sword that day to Clarke using it to keep the door shut.

 

“You were right to do what you did. We may not be standing here right now, without your quick solution to the problem. A sword is just a thing, a thing that can be replaced. I am hoping we can tune your skills there into something you can use in the challenge,” Lexa suggested as she watched Clarke pick up the sword. “Okay, so now that you have the sword, I want you to stand as though you were getting ready for a fight. I want to see just how much training I will need to do.”

 

“You can tell how good of a fighter I am based on how I stand with a sword?” Clarke asked as she moved away from the table and stood in the dirt area. Her feet were positioned at shoulder width, her body facing partially diagonal with her left foot out in front and her right foot back to hold her stance. Her left hand held the sword out in front of her not straight up and down but slightly askew inward to protect any incoming attacks, while her right hand was held back in protection over her body in a fist.

 

Lexa nodded as she watched as Clarke got into position and honestly, she was a little impressed. She had seen warriors catch on to this quickly because they had grown up watching their parents and their siblings do it but Clarke came down from the sky. She had never known fighting. So for her to catch onto something like this so quickly, it made Lexa much more hopeful that this could work. That Clarke could learn in seven days and she could win this battle. She walked around Clarke with her hands held behind her examining each and every detail of the way Clarke was standing, from her position of her feet, to how she held the sword. _This could work._ Lexa thought to herself.

 

There was some silence and Clarke wasn’t sure what to make of it. Was she standing completely wrong and Lexa was trying to figure out how to tell her she’s a terrible fighter? Or was she actually doing well and didn’t know how to tell her that? In a lot of cases, Clarke could read Lexa but in this moment, she could not figure out what was going on in the commander’s head. Her eyes were unresponsive; her facial expression wasn’t giving her anything. She was both worried and terrified for what would be coming out of the commander’s mouth in a few seconds. Then it happened, Clarke was not prepared for what happened next.

 

“I would say that from this, you will make an excellent warrior Clarke of the sky people. However, just one thing,” Lexa moved closer behind Clarke and without even thinking about it she placed her right hand on Clarke’s right hip and moved her left hand along Clarke’s left arm, “You just need to bend your elbows more to allow for more agility.”

 

Clarke did that, she bent her elbow more as directed feeling Lexa’s breath on the back of her neck. She was not prepared for this close contact with Lexa. Obviously, she knew it could happen but she did not think it would feel as good as it did. She was holding in a breath, she wasn’t aware she was holding until she felt both of Lexa’s hands on her hips. _Did she just say something?_ Clarke thought feeling the hairs on the back of her neck stand up as the warm breath of the woman behind her spoke. “I’m sorry what?” She tried with all of her might not to sound nervous from the close contact.

 

“I said that you also need to bend your legs. Standing straight up and down will hurt your chances of attacking. You need to be able to move at a moment’s notice and if your knees are not used to being bent, then you will not be able to move as quick.” Lexa explained again thinking that Clarke must have been too focused to notice her say it the first time.

 

“Right… legs… bent… got- gotcha,” she got out barely taking in a breath she needed feeling like all the moisture in her mouth was gone. She did as she was told and bent her legs a bit, feeling a little more comfortable with a sword now but not feeling okay with the close proximity. It was not helping her reserve.

 

Lexa could sense a nervousness radiating off of the girl standing in front of her, “Are you okay?”

 

Clarke stuttered, “What-- yes of course—why-why would I not be okay?”

 

“You are acting weird. Am I making you uncomfortable standing so close?” Lexa immediately pulled her hands back. She was not one to force the contact on anyone if they did not want it and she wasn’t about to keep contact while said person was acting strange.

 

The contact was gone and even though Clarke felt like she could breathe again, she kind of missed the contact. She enjoyed the close proximity with Lexa. A feeling she wasn’t sure she wanted to feel just yet. She still had these lingering feelings for Finn and she needed to deal with them but Lexa was here and alive. Someone she cared about deeply and not just because they worked together to create an alliance between their two people but because they grew closer as they did so. Clarke wanted Lexa, she wanted a relationship with her, boy did she want that but she also knew that it wouldn’t be fair to her to jump in when she wasn’t sure she was completely over Finn. She wanted to be one hundred percent sure before she jumped into that. So for now, she was going to deal with the butterflies and the sensations she got whenever she was even remotely close to the commander standing right behind her.

 

“I’m sorry. You just surprised me. I wasn’t expecting you to get that close. You’re just lucky that I didn’t turn and slash you with the sword.” Clarke tried to defend her reasons for being so rigid and nervous in that moment.

 

Lexa didn’t really buy it but Clarke was trying to convince her of it so she went along with it, “Would you prefer that I not make contact with you then? I can find other ways to help you.” Lexa offered an alternative solution even though she loved the feeling of Clarke beneath her fingertips. Even if it was just her clothes she was touching, it did not matter. Anything was better than nothing and even though Lexa knew, god did she know, that she would wait as long as Clarke needed to be ready; she still enjoyed the close contact. No matter what it was and this was the closest she’d gotten to Clarke since their encounter in the tent when she took a leap and had kissed Clarke.

 

This wasn’t how she trained her other warriors, the close contact of it all, she could easily just say to them to bend their knees or elbows and they’d do it. However, this was Clarke, the girl she cared for immensely. She knew she’d train her differently, she knew it the second she realized she was going to be training the sky leader. This did not mean however, that she’d take it easy on Clarke. No, she’d still work hard to make sure Clarke knew everything she needed to win but for those rare moments where she could get a little close, she would take it.

 

Clarke couldn’t look at the commander, she knew that if she did, Lexa would most definitely be able to see the lie in her eyes, “No, it’s okay. If this is how I’m going to learn than let’s do it this way.”

 

“Alright,” Lexa walked around Clarke and faced her. “If that is what you wish.”

 

“It is,” She nodded still holding her position and now looking right at Lexa.

 

Lexa turned to the table and grabbed a few wooden swords and handed one to Clarke, “These are usually only used for children, however because I cannot let you get too injured, we will practice with these. Once I believe that you can defend yourself enough, then we will use the real thing.” Lexa didn’t ask she just stated. She was too used to being the commander that she wasn’t used to making sure that was alright with the person was speaking too. It was always her way or death. There was no question to it. Her warriors either listened or they didn’t live anymore. It was as simple as that.

 

Clarke put the sword down on the table and held the wooden sword in her hand in the same position she had before. The weight of the sword was similar to that of the real thing. “Is this sword supposed to duplicate the weight of the real sword or was that a happy accident?”

 

Lexa wasn’t clear on the last part of Clarke’s question but answered anyway, “I made them so that they felt the same so that there would not be much difference going to the real thing.”

 

“You made them?” Clarke asked a little surprised that Lexa built these herself.

 

“Of course I did. I make all of my swords just like each and every other warrior does. This way, it is to our specific likes. Relying on someone else to build a sword for you is a waste of energy because if the sword does not come back the way you want it than you not only wasted their time but yours as well.” Lexa stated getting into position a few meters in front of Clarke. “Now, I want you to try to stop my advances, understood?”

 

“Wait, you aren’t going to give me any pointers at all?” Clarke asked looking at the determined look of the commander across from her.

 

“Clarke, we are just getting started. I am trying to determine what I need to teach you with these lessons. Once I know where you lack, we will focus on that tomorrow. Until then you need to trust that I know what I am doing,” Lexa tried to reassure her noticing that Clarke was a little uneasy about the whole situation.

 

Clarke nodded in understanding, “Okay. I’m ready.”

 

Without notice, Lexa lunged forward with her sword and unexpectedly Clarke deflected the advance rather easily. Lexa tried again and moved to the side slashing with her sword, unfortunately, Clarke did not stop that one as she didn’t move quick enough and the wooden blade slid across her jacket. The commander did not stop there though; she kept on with her attacks. Moving from side to side, using her small stature to jump from foot to foot around Clarke showing her true nature in fighting as she got Clarke here and there. There were a few moments that Clarke was able to stop the attack but for the most part, Clarke was getting the brunt of it all. If these were real swords, Clarke would surely be dead right now.

 

Clarke could see Lexa enjoying herself a bit too much as she watched the commander bounce around her faster than she could imagine possible. She hoped that Lexa would be showing her this form of fighting. It would really come in handy with a guy as big as Cyrus. She got too focused on her thoughts when all of a sudden she felt her feet come out from under her and Lexa was on top of her with the wooden sword to her throat.

 

Still on top of Clarke, knees on each side of Clarke’s waist she held her blade over Clarke’s throat and asked the obvious question, “What happened, Clarke? You lost focus.”

 

Completely missing the question and the fact that Lexa was on top of her now, Clarke groaned, “Ouch. Okay, that hurt.” She brought up her free hand and rubbed the back of her head. “Ugh…” Now that she felt like her brain had caught up to her eyeballs she noticed where Lexa was, “Oh… Did you say something?” She gulped nervously.    

 

“You seemed focused and then I got the upper hand on you, what happened?” Lexa asked not moving from her position.

 

“I—I don’t know,” With her head pounding from the hit, the realization of the predicament they were in was now starting to hit her. She didn’t know where she should place her left hand. Should she keep it on the ground, should she dare place it on Lexa’s leg? She didn’t even know where her sword was. _Did I lose it when I fell?_ Clarke pondered looking around as she lay under the commander trying so desperately not to blush and not to feel the oh so prominent muscles in the commander’s legs around her waist.

 

Lexa huffed, “Clarke, you have to stay focused. You cannot be daydreaming in the middle of battle.” She got up off of Clarke and then put out a hand for Clarke to reach for it.

 

Once back on her feet, Clarke felt a tad dizzy from being brought up a little quick. She stumbled a little before Lexa put a hand out for Clarke to grab onto.

 

“Clarke, are you alright?” She was concerned for Clarke’s safety. Lexa tried so hard not to hurt her too badly and what does she do. This. This was what she did on their first day of training.

 

Clarke shook her head to try and get her bearing back. It took a minute or so before Clarke didn’t feel like her eyeballs were going to fall out of her head, “Yeah, I think I’m fine.”

 

“I do not think you are fine, Clarke. Maybe we should take you to your mother, have her check you out?” Lexa suggested as she did not want to push Clarke any harder than she had. However, if Clarke needed to sit out the rest of the day, that would mean they’d lost a day. She was not alright with that. So to say that she was conflicted in this moment… was an understatement.

 

“If I go to the infirmary, you know as well as I do that my mother would not want me to continue training today.” Clarke confirmed what Lexa had already thought about. “I should be fine. How about we just continue training and if I feel like I’m going to pass out, or I do pass out, I’ll go to the infirmary, okay?” Clarke chuckled a little at the passing out completely.

 

Lexa didn’t know what to do. The warrior in her wanted to continue training; she wanted to continue Clarke’s training no matter what the cost. She knew that Clarke needed to be ready in a week’s time so she could use all the help she could get. However, the part of her that cared for the sky leader, the part of her that might even love her, that part wanted to take her to the infirmary. What was worse was that she didn’t know which side was winning the battle in her mind. Take her to the infirmary or don’t take her to the infirmary.

 

Clarke could see the internal battle going on in Lexa’s mind and she knew that there was definitely a battle because the commander had not let go of her arm yet. She felt fine to stand by herself now but the brunette would not let go of her. “Lexa!” Lexa jumped out of her state and Clarke could finally see Lexa focusing on her now, “I’m fine okay. I know that you’ve always been there to protect me. I know that but I also know that if I don’t learn to fight, you won’t have anyone to protect anymore….” Clarke knew she went there, she knew that she was drudging up the feelings that Lexa tried so hard to hide away from her.

 

Lexa’s grip finally loosened and Clarke was free, “With this training you will not need protecting anymore. You will be able to hold your own.” She admitted to herself.

 

“Let’s be honest, no matter how good I get at fighting, even if I beat Cyrus….” She stopped to take a breath and spoke under her breath just loud enough for Lexa to hear, “I’ll always need you Lexa,” Clarke admitted knowing it was true but never really wanting to admit it out loud. When she had said it weeks ago, it was about needing the leader part of Lexa because without the commander the alliance wouldn’t have held up. But now, now it wasn’t about the leader part of Lexa. This time, it was about needing the person. Clarke had come to know Lexa after spending almost every waking moment together planning the war on mount weather; she had gotten to know the person that no one else did. She was able to see the softer side of the hard stoic commander. That was the part of her that Clarke didn’t want to lose. That was the part that she would always want. The part reserved completely for Clarke.

 

Lexa wanted to kiss Clarke in this moment, she wanted to so bad but she promised herself that she would wait for Clarke to make the next move. On top of that she was speechless; she didn’t know how to respond to that revelation.

 

Clarke was a little surprised that she said it as well and was feeling a little stuck now. “Well, um… Shall we get back to training then? I’ll go see my mother later?”

 

Lexa nodded, grateful for the distraction, “Sure but Clarke if you feel-“

 

“Yes yes, I’ll go see my mother right away.” Clarke waved her hand to stop Lexa from telling her yet again that if she felt dizzy to go to the infirmary.

 

“Okay,” Lexa walked over to where Clarke had thrown her sword and handed it to her before taking her stance again. “Ready?” This time, she gave Clarke warning because she did not want Clarke hurting her head further.

 

Clarke nodded and they were back to battling again. It lasted several hours. They’d battle for a bit, Lexa would give her some pointers and they’d go back at it. Clarke was getting better as time passed. She was blocking better, she was moving better. Lexa could see the progress right before her very eyes. It was starting to look like Clarke was going to be able to do this. Not that Lexa ever thought Clarke couldn’t do it. No, she just wasn’t sure she could fit all of the training into seven days. However, it looked like things were going pretty well.

 

XXXXXXXXX

 

As the sun was starting to go down, Lexa had decided that was enough training for one day. They had done several hours of sword fighting both with the shorter blade and the dagger. They hadn’t moved onto the actual weapon yet but for now, with the wooden replicates it was working quite nicely. It was better than Lexa could have ever hoped for.

 

“Clarke, go see your-“

 

“That is the first stop I’m making. My head is still pounding, I’ll see you tomorrow?” Clarke asked. “Same place, same time?”

 

Lexa nodded, “Yes, I will see you tomorrow.” She watched as Clarke made her way toward the ark with her wooden sword. Lexa thought about mentioning it to Clarke but she seemed too focused on getting herself checked out so she thought she’d just drop it. Clarke would notice she had it eventually. She packed up all the weapons and made her way toward her tent not too far from the ark walls.

 

A couple minutes later, Clarke was in the infirmary with her mother checking out her head and pupils.

 

“Clarke, you should have come seen me as soon as it happened,” Abby was trying to keep it together but she was both worried and pissed at Clarke.

 

“Mom, you and I both know that if I would have come here you would have made me stay here and I can’t waste an entire day lying on a bed. If I don’t learn how to fight, I’ll die in seven… well I guess its six days now.” Clarke argued her point because she knew she was right and she could tell from her mom’s look that she knew she was right too.

 

Abby sighed, “Clarke, if you don’t take better care of yourself you won’t live to see the challenge!” She pointed out in rage but feeling bad as soon as she said it. After taking another breath, she advised, “You just need to be more careful okay?”

 

Clarke nodded, “I understand that mom. I do, so next time I will come here as soon as it happens okay? However, you have to promise me that if it happens again that you have to find a way for me to still be able to train. I can’t afford to lose a day.” She bargained with her mom knowing that giving her what she wanted was the way to go in this situation.

 

“Fine, now I want you to stay here for the night.”

 

“Mom! I said I’m fine,” Clarke argued.

 

“Clarke, you still have a concussion. I want to be able to monitor you. So you either stay the night or I follow you to your training session tomorrow to monitor you. The choice is yours.” Abby wasn’t taking no for an answer.

 

Clarke sighed, defeated she responded with, “Fine. I’ll stay the night but do you have anything for this headache?” She said as she lied back down on the not so comfy infirmary bed.

 

“Yes,” Abby went over to the medicine cabinet and grabbed a few pills before pouring some water into a glass and walking back over to Clarke. “Here, they should help you sleep too.”

 

Clarke smiled as she took the pills with no problem. “Thank you.” Abby turned to walk out of the infirmary before Clarke stopped her, “Hey mom..”

 

Abby turned back around, “Yes Clarke.”

 

“I love you,” Clarke said with hopeful eyes.

 

“I love you too sweetheart, now get some rest,” she smiled as she turned and walked past Octavia coming in. “Not too long, Clarke needs her rest.”

 

“Understood,” Octavia answered as she walked over to where Clarke was lying down before sitting on the bed next to hers. “Hey Clarke,” she tested the waters. She knew where they stood; she was the one that put them there.

 

Staring up at the ceiling Clarke responded coldly with, “Octavia I need rest, I don’t need to be yelled at some more.”

 

Octavia looked down at her hands, “I’m not here to yell at you Clarke.”

 

“Then why are you here?” She responded still staring up at the ceiling.

 

“I just wanted to say that even though I still don’t understand how you let a missile hit Tondc, I want you to know that I don’t think you deserve this,” she responded still staring at her hands.

 

This got Clarke’s attention as she lifted her head up and sat up on her elbows to look at Octavia, “What do you mean?”

 

She finally got the courage to look Clarke in the eyes, “The challenge. I will never understand why you did what you did but I don’t think that you need to prove that you are still strong because of the decision you made.”

 

“While I appreciate what you’re saying Octavia, I don’t see why you are here now. Is this an apology or what?” Clarke was confused. That much was clear. The drugs hadn’t kicked in yet so her head was still pounding and now she had to figure out what Octavia was saying to her too.

 

“Yeah, it is. I may never understand why you did what you did but I’m sorry I let it get in the way of our friendship. Even though I fully believe that you of all people could win this challenge, I don’t want you going into it knowing that you’ve lost a friend because of it.” Octavia explained getting a little teary-eyed thinking about losing Clarke to this challenge.

 

“Thank you Octavia,” Clarke responded with a smile. “It means a lot that you would come here to tell me that.”

 

Octavia smiled, “Also, I know that Lexa is the one training you but if you ever wanted someone to test things on, I’m here, okay? I know that I’m not as fully trained as she is but I can still be a good sparring buddy.” She offered her services knowing that she would have liked to have someone to spar with as well. They could help each other.

 

Clarke smiled again, “I might have to take you up on that offer. I do not want to have a fall like the one I had today.” She groaned grabbing a pillow from the bed Octavia was sitting at so that she could prop herself on the pillows instead of using her elbows to look at Octavia.

 

“Yeah, that looked like a nasty fall.” Octavia winced remembering the fall all too well.

 

“Wait, you saw? Who else saw?” Now she was worried everyone saw you take that dive and would be teased about it for the rest of her life.

 

Octavia smiled awkwardly, “Quite a few of us saw. Jasper, Monty and I were helping build a house when we saw you hit the ground.”

 

“Great,” she sighed dragging out the word in annoyance. The whole point of the training area being away from the camps was so that these things didn’t happen.

 

“Don’t worry Clarke, I took care of it. I told them to get a grounder to train them. Until they knew how hard it is, they have no right to judge. They as well as I do, know that you are much stronger than them. If you hit the ground, chances are they would too. I don’t think they’ll be spreading that information.” Octavia smiled knowing that she had helped Clarke out.

 

“That is a good point. I could not imagine Monty trying to do what I had to do today,” Clarke laughed at the thought of Monty being trained.

 

Octavia nodded in agreement, “Yeah, it would be funny.” She couldn’t help the smile on her face knowing that she had patched things up with Clarke. “Well, I suppose I should let you rest.” She stood up to leave. “Remember, sparring buddies.”

 

Clarke nodded with a smile, “Yeah, sparring buddies.”

 

With that Octavia left. Clarke decided she would try to get some rest as the meds still hadn’t kicked in and she thought maybe if she just closed her eyes, it would help. Just as she was starting to doze off, she heard a knock on the wall probably at the entrance of the infirmary. As she slowly opened her eyes in a fit of rage for being disturbed while trying to sleep she yelled, “Can’t you see that I’m trying to-“ Then she caught sight of who it was and stopped mid-sentence.

 

“Oh sorry, I-I can leave,” The person turned to leave.

 

“No…Lexa wait,” Clarke sat up in her bed with her arm out like she was trying to stop her not really noticing that she had no way of stopping her being across the room from her and all.

 

Lexa didn’t turn all the way back but she shook her, “Clarke, it is fine. You need rest, I understand that. I will see you tomorrow.” She tried to leave again.

 

“You don’t have to leave.” She watched Lexa turn back toward her. Lexa didn’t move her feet, she just stood in the doorway to the infirmary. “You don’t have to stand all the way over there. Do you really want to talk to me from across the room?” Clarke asked the commander watching her from a distance.

 

“Clarke I do not wish to disturb you,” Lexa stood her ground. Her mind would not stop thinking about how Clarke was so she made the decision to come see for herself. She knew she could wait until the next day to find out how Clarke was but something made her check now. She feared that she would not sleep a wink without knowing now.

 

Clarke laid back down on the bed ever so carefully wincing as she did so both from the pain in her head and the few bruises she gained from the wooden sword fighting from earlier that day, “I promise you, you’re not. Should I be sleeping? Probably but it can wait.”

 

Lexa saw her wince and before she knew it her feet were moving her toward Clarke, instead of sitting where Octavia had sat, her feet lead her to sit on the edge of Clarke’s bed. It was a shock to both her and Clarke but they both dealt with it as Lexa didn’t really know how to correct it without it looking awkward so she stayed there. “How are you feeling?” She sat with her hands in her lap.

 

Clarke shrugged, “Oh you know, like I got my ass handed to me by the commander of the tree people.” She chuckled trying to get a smile out of Lexa.

 

Lexa couldn’t help but to let a little smile appear, “I did not mean for you to end up here on your first day of training.”

 

“Lexa… stop. Things happen, that’s what happens in training.” Clarke tried to reassure her that she was fine as she touched Lexa’s arm. “You said it yourself; you train harder than that with other warriors. It’s okay that I got a little injured.”

 

“I know it’s just that you cannot have a head injury going into the challenge. Your mind needs to be focused.” Lexa pointed out looking over at the hand that Clarke had placed on her arm then back to Clarke’s eyes.

 

“And it will be, I’m sure you’ll see to that. At least this happened on day one, it would have been bad if it happened on day six. So stop worrying. My mom wants me to stay the night here so she can check up on me and then tomorrow we’ll go back to training. It’s going to be fine.” Then a thought occurred to Clarke, “Speaking of training.” She let go of Lexa’s arm to reach down to the right of her bed, “I seem to have taken this with me.” She handed the wooden sword to Lexa who gladly took it.

 

“I did watch you take it with you,” Lexa confessed.

 

Clarke looked at her shocked, “If you knew, why didn’t you say anything?”

 

“You were too focused on your path. I did not want to disturb you. I knew you would realize it and bring it back with you tomorrow.” Lexa explained.

 

A thought occurred to Clarke, “Is that why you came here? To get the sword?” Clarke felt a little disappointed if that was the true reason Lexa came to visit her.

 

Lexa shook her head from side to side, “No, I came here to make sure you were okay.”

 

Clarke couldn’t help the smile and the warmth in her chest she felt from the fact that Lexa had come to see her with the sole purpose to see if she was alright. “Well thanks. I am okay. I promise.” She couldn’t help the yawn that overtook her in that moment. _Damn you yawn, ruining an excellent moment._ Clarke thought to herself.

 

“I should probably be on my way then,” Lexa went to stand when she felt a hand on hers so she sat back down, “Yes, Clarke?”

 

Clarke looked at Lexa, their hands still connected in that moment. There were so many things Clarke wanted to say in this moment. The fact that Lexa came there just to see if she was okay, the fact that Lexa cared enough to do that… The old Lexa would have laughed at the person she’d become. Love was not weakness anymore to the commander sitting in front of her. Clarke knew that. “Thank you for coming to check on me, it really means a lot.” She responded with chickening out on what she wanted to say but not knowing how to say it.

 

Lexa nodded, “Of course.” She felt Clarke release her grip on her hand so she was able to stand up again. “Goodnight Clarke.”

 

“Goodnight Lexa,” Clarke responded before sleep finally overtook her.

 

Lexa watched for only a moment as Clarke’s eyelids slowly closed and her breathing evened out indicating that she was asleep. She could have spent the whole night looking upon the sky leader but she knew that she didn’t have that right yet. For an unknown amount of time, she had been watching Clarke from the doorway until someone startled her when they went into the infirmary to check on Clarke.

 

It was Abby who had startled her. Lexa had no idea how she hadn’t seen Abby coming. In normal circumstances, she could have heard Abby coming from a mile away but for whatever reason it was like her ability to listen was gone. All of her focus was on the sky leader and she couldn’t figure out why that was. Abby didn’t say anything to her; she just walked past the lurking commander and did her job.

 

As Abby was about to walk by Lexa, she stopped to look at the commander, “You don’t need to stand in the doorway to watch over her.”

 

Lexa didn’t know how to respond to that because honestly, she didn’t know why she was still standing in the doorway. She had meant to leave, she did but she couldn’t get her feet to operate.

 

“Look I know that you care about my daughter,” Abby whispered making sure not to disturb Clarke. “And I know that if you could do anything to stop this challenge, you would, but you can’t beat yourself up over this.” Abby tried to reassure the commander who tried to hide her emotions but Abby could see right through her. She’d been around the block for a long time; she knew when someone was hiding something.

 

Still Lexa had no idea what to say. She had thought for the longest time that she had kept her feelings to herself but apparently she was failing at even that task. Her emotions, her feelings for Clarke were too big for her to keep under wraps. Abby was proof of that. She just stood their speechless.

 

Abby thought for a moment before continuing, “You and I both know that Clarke is not an early bird. She does not get up very early. If you want, you can stay here and sleep for the night as well. I cannot have you standing here in the doorway all night long because that would mean that you would be tired for training tomorrow. Training that my daughter needs to survive the challenge.” She suggested to the very speechless commander. In all the time she’d known the girl in front of her, she’d never seen her so speechless. It made her suspicions about the commander’s feelings toward Clarke so very true.

 

Finally Lexa found her voice and tried to argue, “I cannot ask you to do that.”

 

“I insist because I have a feeling that even if you went back to your tent, you would not get much rest anyway. Am I right?” Abby asked already knowing the answer. She knew love when she saw it.

 

Lexa nodded in defeat without saying a word.

 

“Then it’s settled. Use any cot you would like. I’ll be back to check on Clarke in the early hours so if you are not awake, would you like me to wake you? I’m assuming you do not want Clarke to know you stayed the night do you?” Abby asked again already knowing the answer.

 

“I have gotten used to getting up in the early morning but being that I have not slept in a room that had no windows, it would be kind of you to wake me just in case.” Lexa nodded walking over to the cot that wasn’t right next to Clarke but the one just over that one. Close enough to watch but not close enough to hopefully be sensed that she was there. She did not want Clarke to know that she stayed the night to make sure she was okay. After she took off her sword and her armour she carefully laid them on the ground and then laid down on the cot as she looked over at Clarke.

 

Abby watched the moment in front of her, “Now just remember to actually get some sleep.”

 

Lexa nodded in understanding without saying a word. She watched as Abby turned and left before directing her eyesight back to a sleeping Clarke. When she had first met Abby, she wasn’t sure about the woman but in this moment, she was growing on Lexa. It wasn’t long before sleep overtook the commander as well. She hadn’t realized how tired she was until her head had hit the comfy pillow. Before she knew it she was out.

 

Unbeknownst to both Lexa and Abby someone in the room overheard the entire conversation.


	7. Day 2

_DAY 2_

It was the beginning of Day two; the second day to Clarke’s stretch of training, training that would either help her win the challenge against Cyrus or if she couldn’t learn in time would end her life. She knew how important it was for her to win, it would not only prove her strength to the other grounders but it would help her realize that she was more than just great ideas and a healer to her people. That even though she was thrown into this role as leader that she was meant for it. It didn’t matter how often Lexa or Bellamy had told her that she was meant to be a leader, it still didn’t mean that she was good at it.

 

When they landed on Earth several weeks ago, it was all about fun at first. They were alive; they didn’t die when the dropship door opened. They were the first people to land on Earth…. Well so they thought until Jasper was almost killed by the inhabitants already on Earth. The Grounders, they’d lived there probably from the moment that the bombs went off originally. They’d lived through all of the radiation, adapted to the changes of the Earth, to the way things ran without electricity. This was their planet and when Clarke and the other ninety-nine people arrived on Earth, they were invaders as Anya had put it. So someone had to take on that leader role. Bellamy only wanted power; he wanted to rule over their people but Clarke, she grew up on better values. Her father had taught her to be better than that, to care for the people around her, no matter what the cost. That’s what she did. Did she like it? No, but she did it because no one else would.

 

She took on that role and now she was paying for it. She may not completely understand Cyrus’ reasons for challenging her but in the end she only truly had one choice if she wanted Lexa to stay in her life. There was no way she was going to be the reason that their alliance, her idea, broke.

 

So just like the day before, Clarke was on her way for more training. After spending a night in the infirmary getting checkups throughout the night by her mother for her concussion, she was walking toward her trainer. Her trainer being the very woman who not only caused her injury but also made sure she was okay and… stayed with her overnight. Not that Clarke should know that information however. She only overheard her mom and Lexa’s entire conversation while she was trying to sleep. Clarke was very unsure about what she should do about this information. She knew what it meant, she knew that Lexa had feelings for her, she knew this. However, knowing and actually seeing, or more like hearing it in action were two very different things. It was clear to Clarke that Lexa would move mountains and oceans if it meant helping Clarke. If it meant being there for her, Lexa was going to do it. Clarke knew that.

 

When Clarke approached the commander, Lexa had her back to Clarke standing in front of the table of weapons. Clarke didn’t want to startle the commander; however she was pretty sure Lexa already knew she was there. She was the commander, the same woman that could recognize her in the woods when she was following Lexa and Monty. Of course she had to know Clarke was standing there. However, she chose not to say anything. She chose to see how long it took Lexa to turn around.

 

As Clarke suspected, Lexa knew Clarke was behind her. Lexa had felt Clarke’s eyes on her for quite a while but she wasn’t sure how to face her. She had to train Clarke, that much was true and she knew she’d push her feelings to the back of her mind to train her but there was still a part of her that was stuck.

 

The night before she had done something she had never done before. From the moment she lost Costia, her motto was “love is weakness” and for the most part it had worked for her. The hard exterior, her heart boarded up with ice, the ruthless nature she held. She was the ideal commander, the one that could get any job done, no matter what the circumstance because nothing affected her. There was nothing stopping her from doing anything. However now… Now she had developed emotions that she hadn’t felt in a very long time. Emotions that she promised herself she would never feel again. She’d stayed in the ark’s infirmary for one purpose and one purpose only… To make sure Clarke lived. She stayed not because she wanted to make sure the warrior she was training would live for the challenge, no, she stayed because she genuinely cared for the person and wanted to make sure she was there just in case something bad happened. Protecting Clarke had always been her priority. She wanted that to change, boy did she, but she couldn’t. The feelings she had for the sky leader were far too overwhelming. However, today in this moment she decided that she needed to stop being so loving in the training, she needed to put her feelings to the side and train her the way Clarke wanted to be trained. Clarke wanted to be a warrior; Lexa would train her like a warrior.

 

After a few minutes of Clarke staring at Lexa’s back, Lexa finally turned around bringing up her façade of a strong warrior, one that was not fazed by the love she felt for the woman in front of her. “You are here. Shall we begin?” Lexa asked going straight to the point. No pleasantries. She couldn’t handle pleasantries. If she wanted to keep up with the idea that she would not treat Clarke differently than her warriors, she needed to stay away from anything that would bring up her feelings.

 

Clarke nodded, “Yes. What are you teaching me today?”

 

As Clarke was asking, Lexa’s hand went for the sword on her back pulling it from the sheath with ease. “Today, we will be seeing how much you remember from yesterday but with the real thing…” Lexa turned back to the table and picked up the sword that Clarke was looking at the day before. “Here,” She handed the sword over to Clarke. “We’ll start easy so that you can get a hang of it and then I’ll really test your memory from yesterday.” Lexa could see that Clarke had worn her armour from the battle of mount weather. Obviously, she had wanted to be a little safer than the day before.

 

“Got it,” Clarke was feeling a sense of determination all of a sudden.

 

At first Clarke and Lexa sparred easily, their swords clashing together with a ting here and a ting there, Clarke moving around pretty well but after a few minutes Lexa got a surprise. Clarke went off of their simple sword swinging and tried something different catching Lexa a little off guard. She was waiting for the perfect moment for her to take the reins but Clarke just took that initiative.

 

Lexa was able to parry it away from her but she was still a little shocked that Clarke tried to get her, she could see the smirk on Clarke’s face when she did it too. Without being able to say another word, Clarke tried again, swiping her sword in the other direction. Lexa was able to deflect. Clarke tried again, but was deflected. “You are doing well, Clarke. But it’s my turn…” The look in Lexa’s eyes were of fire, she knew what she was going to do and she wondered if Clarke was going to be able to defend herself.

 

Lexa took off the kid gloves and went for the money on the first strike, jabbing her sword straight forward but Clarke was quick enough to move and parry the sword away. Clarke retaliated by swinging her sword to Lexa’s left side but Lexa was about to dodge the attack. Lexa took this advantage to try and knock Clarke down but unlike last time Clarke predicted Lexa’s move and jumped the attack landing on her feet and bringing her sword back out in front of her and swung it with the momentum of the jump, this time instead of connecting with Lexa’s sword, Clarke got the armour on her wrist. Her sword bounced off with a ting. They both froze. Lexa knew they needed to keep training but they were both too shocked by what just happened.

 

“Did I- Did I just connect with you?” Clarke questioned not sure if she had just done what she did. For a second she was thinking that she just imagined the whole thing.

 

The commander quickly looked at her armour on her right wrist and could see where the sword connected leaving a mark in the metal. Mouth gaped she marveled, “You did…” Looking back up at Clarke she couldn’t have been more proud. “Are you sure you have not had any sword training?”

 

Clarke shook her head, “No, I have not. I swear,” she put her hands up in defense. “Up until yesterday, I had never really held a sword for this use.”

 

“You are a very quick learner Clarke; this might not be as tough as I first thought it would be. If you can hit me on your second day of training, you are on the right path. Shall we go again?” Lexa asked seeing Clarke fill with more pride than she herself could ever have hoped for.

 

“I’m ready when you are,” Clarke answered sounding a little cocky.

 

“Be careful Clarke,” Lexa warned moving in a circle across from Clarke, “Do not let this win go to your head. That is how you could lose.”

 

Clarke nodded in understanding getting ready for Lexa to make her move.

 

XXXXXXXX

 

“Ooooo… Monty, you turned away at the wrong time man,” Jasper exclaimed looking out toward the training area.

 

Monty stumbled half walked out of the house him and Jasper were working on, “What? What did I miss?”

 

“It looks to me like Clarke just slashed the commander with her sword,” Jasper explained to Monty.

 

Monty looked over curious to see, “What? The one time I look away to do the work we’ve been tasked to do, I miss that? No way.” He threw his hands up in annoyance. “I’m not working anymore, I’m watching this because I’m sure it’s going to get good.”

 

“Monty, Jasper, what are you doing? You’re supposed to be working on this house,” A very irritated Octavia marched right up to them.

 

Completely missing the question, Monty responded, “According to Jasper, Clarke just got Lexa with her sword…”

 

“What?” She dragged the word out in a higher pitched voice. “I don’t believe that. I’ve seen her fight thirty guys and barely get touched yet Clarke was able to-“ Her words were cut off when she glanced over to the duo just standing there staring at each other. Then she stood tall and put all her focus on Clarke and Lexa, “What are they doing? They’re just standing there.”

 

“Yeah, because they are so shocked by what just happened...” Jasper answered rather excitedly.

 

Monty pointed toward the two leaders, “See, Lexa is looking at her armour, I think Jasper’s right. Clarke must have connected with her. Why would she examine her armour if she did not get hit?”

 

“Wow…” Octavia crossed her arms in thought feeling impressed by what Clarke was able to do. She would have been grinning from ear to ear if she was able to get Indra with her sword but that hadn’t happened yet and probably never will.

 

“Oh, looks like they have gotten over the shock and have gotten back into sword fighting…” Jasper pointed out noticing them move in a circle again swiping their swords here and there.

 

“This should be good,” Monty positioned himself in a more sturdy position so that he could focus on the fighting and not get too tired from standing.

 

Octavia still looking at the fighting mentioned, “We really should be working on the houses but I just can’t pull my eyes away. Oh…” She winced at the scene in front of them.

 

Monty put his hand to his mouth in a fist, “Yikes that looked painful.”

 

“I could almost feel the pain of that all the way over here.” Jasper looked between the other two people and they nodded in agreement. “Oh but it looks like Clarke is getting back up.” He pointed at Clarke getting up from a rather hard fall.

 

Clarke hadn’t hit her head that time but it looked like she may have tripped over something on the ground and Lexa took advantage of that momentum knocking her down with the end of the handle of her sword.

 

“Well I’d be a little more forceful to if I was the commander of the grounders and a sky person somehow beat me at my own game,” Octavia pointed out knowing that from all of her training with the grounders that they can be a little defensive when a sky person beats them. She had learned that first hand a few times. However, she had also learned that it was about respect as well. During the bombing she was able to prove herself to the other seconds and was able to gain some respect which had helped in training lately.  

 

Monty nodded in agreement before, “That’s true.” He then looked away and focused on Octavia having a question, “I get that Clarke needs to be ready for the challenge but isn’t it about training and not about beating her up so bad that she can’t fight in the end?” Monty awaited an answer. This was something he had been curious about from the moment he had seen Clarke take a dive the day before. An injury that from what he had later heard was bad enough that she needed to go to the infirmary.

 

Octavia didn’t look away from the training in front of her and she explained, “This is the grounder way. They don’t teach and hope for the best.” She finally looked over to Monty, “They have lived in a world where you either know how to fight or you die. There is no in between for them. So I get why Lexa is teaching Clarke this way. Clarke will either pick it up or she won’t. She will either learn how to fight or she’ll die trying in five days.” They shared a knowing look before looking back to see Clarke holding her own against the commander. “It’s harsh but it’s how they operate. I have had my fair share of stays at the infirmary since Indra asked me to be her second. I know what she’s going through.”

 

“Ohh….” Jasper exclaimed excitedly watching Clarke take down the commander. “Did you guys see that this time?” He pointed at the scene in front of them. “Please tell me you saw that?” They all looked on to the very impressive scene in front of them waiting to see what was going to happen next.

 

Lexa was able to get an advantage over Clarke by knocking her sword out her hand and knocking her to the ground. However, Clarke wasn’t going to give up so easily, when she was sure Lexa had given up, Clarke with her back to Lexa grabbed a handful of dirt and stood up spinning around letting go of the dirt at Lexa’s eye level. For just a moment, the dirt blinded Lexa enough for Clarke to tackle her down. They both hit the ground in a mess of limbs. Straddling Lexa, Clarke knocked Lexa’s sword loose from her hand, it landing a few feet away from them. The sky leader grabbed the dagger from Lexa’s belt and held it to the commander’s throat. Lexa used her one free hand to wipe the dirt from her eyes.

 

“If this were real, you would be dead right now commander,” Clarke pointed out the situation at hand.

 

Finally Lexa got the dirt out of her eyes and focused on the scene in front of her, “Well done Clarke. You were able to take a bad situation and use it to your advantage. Most people would have given up once they lost their sword but not you.”

 

Clarke smirked, “Well I did learn from the best.”

Lexa couldn’t help the smile that invaded her face from the compliment, “Well I am trying to make you a worthy fighter.”

 

“I’m not talking about you, I’m talking about Anya in this situation,” Clarke clarified holding back a smile as she continued to straddle Lexa holding her on the ground. Lexa looked confused so Clarke continued, “When she and I were fighting, I threw dirt at her too but it didn’t seem well placed so I tried to make sure I got you in the eyes this time, it seemed to work this time. It’s all about timing I guess. Fighting Anya, I had learned that it’s all about using your surroundings to your advantage.” Clarke leaned back into a sitting position holding on to Lexa’s dagger as she went down memory lane. Lexa leaned up on her elbows to get a better look at Clarke. “I used a log; I tried distracting her with dirt, even an injury that she got while we escaped Mount Weather to take her out. I figure that’s the type of fighting I needed to hold onto for this challenge.” Clarke explained further not seeming to move from her position of sitting on top of Lexa.

 

Lexa looked upon Clarke feeling every emotion that Clarke had felt for Anya. It was clear that Clarke had only known Anya for a short time but in that short time it was enough to imprint on Clarke. In this moment all Lexa could think was how she had wished she could have seen them interact. She wished that she could have seen Anya train Clarke because she had a feeling that it would have been very different to the way she was trying to train Clarke now. “I think Anya would have been proud of how far you have come, Clarke,” She looked Clarke straight in the eye when she acknowledged the fact that her trainer would have been of Clarke as well.

 

Finally noticing the predicament they were in, “Oh, I’m probably squishing you. Here, let me get off of you,” she moved to get off of Lexa. Holding out an arm for Lexa to grab it, she helped hoist the commander off the ground. The momentum brought them closer than either had predicted it would.

 

Body to body, Lexa’s left hand went straight for Clarke’s waist to stop her from crashing right into Clarke. “Oh, I’m sorry,” Lexa apologized but didn’t move. She couldn’t keep her eyes off of Clarke’s ocean blue eyes. They were so close she could feel Clarke’s breath on her skin. Just a little closer and she could taste the sky leader’s lips once more. She swallowed nervously trying to look at Clarke’s eyes but then falling to her lips back and forth trying to decide if she should break her promise to herself or not.  

 

Clarke too was lost in emerald eyes. She needed to pull away, she couldn’t get lost in a relationship now. It was about training nothing more. There was no way she was going to give into her feelings for Lexa when she could die in a few days. It wouldn’t be right for her to let the commander go through yet another loss. Costia broke her and made her heartless, Clarke can’t imagine what would happen if she died. What would become of the commander? Would she even exist as a person anymore? Could she live anymore? Did the grounders believe in suicide? Clarke didn’t know and she didn’t want to find out so she had to pull away. She had to let go of that gaze, she had to let go of Lexa’s warm body against her own, and she needed to think about the bigger picture. “It’s alright.” She walked over to where Lexa’s sword laid and picked it up. “Here you go,” Clarke handed over the sword their hands brushing just slightly.

 

Lexa could feel the electricity of Clarke’s touch rushing through her arm up into her heart, “Thank you.” She shook herself as though she was zoned out on something, “Uh, that tactic was a- a good choice. I would say that if you ever come across that in the challenge, you should use your surroundings to your advantage.” She almost whispered that last part trying to regain composure but failing.

 

Clarke nodded, “Good to know. Oh right, here’s your dagger too…” she finally handed over the little dagger she was holding on to.

 

“Right, I guess I would need that,” she took the dagger and put it back in its sheath on her hip. “Shall we go again?”

 

“Yeah, let’s see if I can take you down again,” Clarke challenged with a smirk.

 

“I believe twice is enough for today, you will have to do more to take me down once more,” Lexa smirked feeling like she was training someone of equal power. It wasn’t every day that she trained someone that was able to take her out so easily.

 

XXXXXXXXX

 

“What the hell are you guys doing?” A very pissed Lincoln walked right over to the three sky people watching the two leaders training.

  

Octavia looked away from the training to Lincoln and calmly responded with, “We’re watching the training. Clarke is doing an exceptional job. She might actually win this challenge.”

 

Monty and Jasper nodded next to her.

 

“So watching is more important than getting ready for winter?” Lincoln argued.

 

“Of course not, we were only taking a break is all,” Jasper answered. “Besides, it’s for research.”

 

Monty nodded, “Yeah, research.” He went along with Jasper hoping he knew what he was doing.

 

“Research, huh? What kind of research?” He crossed his arms in question glaring at the two of them.

 

Monty didn’t know where Jasper was going with this so he looked over to Jasper as well.

 

Jasper glared at Monty for putting the pressure on him, “Well, I suspect that eventually we’re all going to learn how to fight with a sword so… I am… taking notes for when I get trained. Yeah… right Monty?”

 

“What he said.” Monty nodded crossing his arms in agreement.

 

Lincoln didn’t really believe there story but let it slide before he looked to Octavia, “What’s your excuse?”

 

“Honestly, I’m just watching. They roped me in when I came over here to get them to go back to work.” Octavia straight up admitted. “Like I said, Clarke is really holding her own against Lexa.”

 

Letting down his façade for coming over, he looked over to the training, “Who is winning?”

 

Jasper being confused looked over to Lincoln, “What? I thought you were pissed that we weren’t doing work and now you want to know who is winning.”

 

“Yeah, if you three are not working, then I want to know how it is going. Do you really think Clarke will be ready for the challenge?” Lincoln asked standing to the left of Octavia.    

 

Monty piped up, “Well, so far I’d say Lexa is definitely winning but Clarke is definitely doing better than yesterday.”

 

Lincoln looked over a little surprised, “Really? So she’s good with a gun and a sword then?”

 

“So far, I’d say she’s still better with a gun but she’s really finding her way with a sword,” Octavia pointed out as they all watched the training unfold in front of them.

 

They continued to talk about the training as Clarke and Lexa battled between each other. Being that using a sword was the main focus of the challenge, Lexa needed to make sure that Clarke could handle herself to the best of her abilities with it.

 

XXXXXXXXX

 

Later that night, after finishing her dinner, Clarke approached Octavia sitting next to Bellamy. “Hey Octavia, can I take you up on your offer? Do you want to spar? I could use a break from serious fighting and just have some fun with it.” She asked hopeful that the offer was still open.

 

Octavia nodded, “Yeah, just give me a moment okay?”

 

“Okay, I’ll meet you over there then,” Clarke pointed to the area where she and Lexa were training earlier. She walked over to the area with a torch and lit the other torches before putting it out and just waiting for Octavia to arrive.

 

“What are you doing O? I thought we agreed that Clarke was in the wrong about Tondc?” Bellamy argued a little pissed that Octavia, his sister, was not only speaking to Clarke but going to spar with her.

 

Octavia got up on her feet, “You know what Bell, I decided that my friendship with Clarke was worth more than my ego. I still don’t understand, and probably never will understand how Clarke could let all of those people die but I don’t want her going into that challenge knowing she has lost my friendship.”

 

“I-“ He tried to respond but Octavia cut him off.

 

“So I decided to mend my relationship with her. If you want to let your high and mighty ego get in the way of your friendship with Clarke, be my guest but I’m not you.” With that she up and left Bellamy to sit there and stew.

 

Minutes later, she found Clarke sitting in the training area, “Hey Clarke.”

 

Clarke turned around, “Hey.” Standing up on to her feet, “So I was thinking that we could spar not so seriously? All day long it’s been about Lexa trying to take me out or vice versa, it would be nice to just have fun with it. What do you say?”

 

Octavia nodded, “Yeah, sounds great.” She reached for her sword on her back when Clarke stopped her.

 

“You won’t need that.” Clarke turned around and faced the table behind her. She had made sure Lexa left two weapons that she could use with Octavia here.

 

Octavia looked at Clarke confused, “How are we going to spar without any swords?”

 

“We are using swords,” She turned around holding the wooden swords she and Lexa used the day before. “Here,” she handed one of the wooden swords to Octavia.

 

Octavia felt the weight and was a little surprised at how heavy it was, “Whoa, I’ve never seen these before. Why do you get to train with these? I only get to use the real things.”

 

“Lexa said that she made these so that I could get used to using a sword before going to the real thing so that I didn’t get cut as much. If I would have had more time, I don’t think we’d be using these.” Clarke explained.

 

“Cool, we’ll have to spar more if we get to use these,” Octavia put up her sword. “Ready when you are,” she smiled wiggling her eyebrows.

 

Clarke laughed brining up her sword as they play fought against each. Sometimes they were serious, most of the time they acted like children. This wasn’t about improving their tactics, it was about having fun because neither of them had that. Neither of them had someone to just have fun with when it came to learning. Their trainers, Indra and Lexa, were only about training nothing more.

 

In the distance, over where Monty, Jasper, Octavia and Lincoln were standing earlier a familiar person stood and watched them have fun. He was alone or so he thought until he heard footsteps come up behind him and stood next to him. Of all the people that could have come to him, he did not think she would be the one to stand next to him.

 

“Have you come to yell at me?” Bellamy asked without looking at her.

 

“No, I have not.” The voice answered to the right of him.

 

Bellamy looked over to the commander of the grounders, “What do you mean you aren’t here to yell at me? You of all people should want to yell at me the most.” He admitted wanting to yell at her but knowing that if he did, the two having fun would surely hear him.

 

She finally looked from the two having fun straight at Bellamy and calmly asked, “How exactly would yelling at you change the situation at hand?”

 

He shrugged his shoulders, “I don’t know but if it wasn’t for me and my big mouth accusing Clarke of killing all those people at Tondc, she wouldn’t be in this situation right now. That’s on me.” He acknowledged knowing full well that all of this really was his fault. The fact that Cyrus has challenged Clarke is all on him.

 

“Yes it is,” She directed her eyesight back to the two having fun in the distance. “The challenge is all your fault, you are right.”

 

“Then why? Why aren’t you madder? You have to train her,” he motioned to Clarke in the distance with his left hand keeping his eyes locked on Lexa, “because of me! You have to make sure that she can fight well enough to fight Cyrus to the death. You should be pissed. I would be pissed at you if the roles were reversed.” He kept his gaze on her even if she wasn’t looking at him.

 

Finally she looked back at him again, “Yelling at you will not change the outcome. All of this, all of the training, will not change if I yell at you. I live in the now. I do not live in the past. If yelling at you meant that the challenge did not exist then I would surely yell at you but it will not. There is no point in focusing on something that will not change.” She looked away from him and back to Clarke and Octavia having fun pretending to actually get stabbed and fall to the ground. “I can only train her and hope that she takes from it what she needs to win this challenge. I cannot do anything to change that and neither can you.” She said with no emotion as she did not want him to know what she was feeling in this moment.

 

He took what she had to say to heart as he looked back toward Clarke and Octavia having fun on the training field. “Do you think…“ He didn’t know how to ask what he wanted to ask especially to the person he partially blamed for what happened at Tondc.

 

She did not look at him and she did not try to urge him to say what he wanted to say as she did not care enough to try and help him. As much as she believed that living in the now was the way, she still did not particularly like the fact that she was here in this moment because of him. In five days, she could lose the woman of her dreams and as Bellamy had stated, it was his fault. So she stood there and waited. If he asked her something, she would respond, if he didn’t then she would continue to watch. Since her training with Clarke was supposed to be all business, she was not able to do any of this with Clarke. She wanted to but she couldn’t. She couldn’t stop to have fun because she needed to put as much focus on training as she possibly could. It could be the difference between life and death.

 

He swallowed nervously, “Do you think she would forgive me?” His voice was barely over a whisper and he wasn’t sure that the commander had even heard him.

 

Lexa responded emotionless, “I do not know.”

 

“Would you?” He asked unsure of her answer. “If the roles were reversed, would you be able to forgive me?”

 

“I cannot answer that for you as I do not know you, as well as she does.” She answered honestly.

 

“I know that you and I do not see eye to eye on most things and I know that I was against the alliance from the start but we would not have gotten our people out of mount weather without your help. So please,” he begged directing his gaze back to her, “Just tell me, if you were in her position, would you forgive me?”  

 

She looked back over to him and for a moment she actually felt bad for him. “As I said, I do not know you well enough to give you an exact answer.” He tried to interrupt but she put her left hand up to stop him. “However, if I were to answer you based on what I have seen from who Clarke is…” She took a moment to think about a good answer looking back at the fun ahead of them. “I believe that she _might_ forgive you. Clarke does not seem like someone who would hold something over someone’s head so if you were to apologize, she may forgive you. If I was in her shoes however, I probably would not forgive you.”

 

Bellamy chuckled looking back to Octavia and Clarke, “Yeah well, as I said you and I have never seen eye to eye so that doesn’t really surprise me.”

 

“You assume that I would not forgive you based on the fact that we do not get along. That is not the case.” She admitted to him letting her anger toward him show a little.

 

He looked at her confused, “Then why?”

     

“I do not base my decisions on whether or not I like someone. I base them on facts.” She paused for a moment to turn and look him right in the eyes. “The fact is that you have not proven yourself worthy to be forgiven. All I have seen, is you walk around this camp like you know what is best. When you have no idea what she has had to go through to survive this war.” The anger in her voice was rising, “The death she has had to see, the pain, the suffering, all to save your people. I was there to help her with it all. Did she have to make hard decisions? Yes, but all leaders have to make hard calls one way or another.” She stopped to take a breath. “She cares for her people, as Cyrus had said she leads with her heart! So for you to come out of that mountain and assume that you know what she had to go through to get to that point before you actually knew… You should not be forgiven that easy. But I am not Clarke; it is up to her as to whether you will be forgiven so easily or not.” She had enough of his questions so she turned to leave.

 

He went to try and respond again but she was gone and he was left with his thoughts.

 

Cut over to Clarke and Octavia sparring, “Lexa’s walking away.” Clarke whispered to Octavia standing in front of her.

 

“She didn’t kill him? Wow, I thought it was going to get much worse than that. By the way, you don’t need to whisper, they can’t hear us. I mean the only reason we could hear their conversation was because Lexa couldn’t keep her voice under control.” Octavia pointed out looking over her shoulder to get a quick look of her brother standing in the distance. He stood for a moment before he too turned to leave. “So Clarke the million dollar question, if Bellamy came to you for forgiveness, would you forgive him?” Octavia asked.

 

Clarke stood there and just stared at Octavia blankly, “I honestly don’t know if I would. I mean Lexa’s right. I’m in this situation right now because of him. In five days, I could die because of him. So I don’t know… I don’t know if I could forgive Bellamy.” She answered honestly.


	8. Day 3 (Part 1)

**_DAY 3_ **

****

Monty and Jasper walked over to where they were the day before watching the training occur. This time however, they brought makeshift chairs that they built the night before so that they could be a little more comfortable watching the training. Looking out at the training circle, they couldn’t see Clarke or Lexa so they figured that they must have beaten them there so they didn’t miss a thing.

 

“Sweet, we beat both Clarke and Lexa here,” Jasper pointed out rather excited setting up his chair in the best place. Making sure that the sun wasn’t in his eyes too much but still could see the training circle clearly.

 

Monty did the same setting up his chair right next to Jasper’s. They even brought a third chair just in case Octavia wanted to join in on their fun again. “Oh, this is going to be good.” Sitting down on the chair he looked over to Jasper and asked, “Should we make bets on who is going to get the most shots in today?”

 

Jasper nodded, “That’s a great idea. My money is still on the commander. I think she’s still going to kick Clarke’s ass.” He smirked staring out at the circle before looking over to a shocked Monty, “What? You have to agree, she’s a badass. I mean she was smart enough to turn your ass down.” He answered smugly.

 

“Shhh….” He put his index finger to his lips. “Keep it down” He whispered rather irked that Jasper would say that so loud. “That’s supposed to stay between you and me. I don’t want the whole place to know that I even tried that.” He said the last bit between clenched teeth warning Jasper.

 

“You know everyone is just going to find out at some point,” Jasper added to his original statement. “Besides, it’s quite clear that you never had a chance anyways.”

 

Monty looked at his confused, “What are you talking about?” He threw a berry into his mouth offering some to Jasper who gladly took some.

 

Jasper put a berry in his mouth, “Well, I heard that the commander stayed in the infirmary all night after she knocked Clarke on the ground a couple days ago.”

 

“How do you even know that?” Monty asked feeling completely out of the loop and little shocked that Jasper took this long to even tell him.

 

“I have eyes everywhere,” Jasper wiggled his eyebrows for extra effect.

 

Monty pushed Jasper causing him to almost fall out of his chair, “Seriously, how do you know that?”

 

Jasper leaned forward toward Monty resting his arms on his knees whispering, “Okay… Okay… I saw her enter the infirmary the night it happened and Maya told me she saw the commander leaving earlier the next day.” He couldn’t let the smirk on his face go away. “I don’t know about you but I think there is more there than a trainer being worried for the safety of the person they are training.”

 

Monty’s mouth opened agape shocked at what he just heard. He didn’t realize he had his mouth open until his mouth felt a little dry and he spoke to himself, “Well maybe she was talking about Clarke.”

 

“What are _you_ talking about now?” Jasper asked trying to understand what his best friend was saying.

 

Monty didn’t even know what he had said was heard by Jasper until Jasper asked the question, “Well, when she shot me down. She had said that she had her eyes on someone else. Maybe that person is Clarke.” He sat there feeling like all of the pieces were falling into place. “Why hadn’t I seen it? It was right there.”

 

“Okay Monty. Seriously, use your words. I’m getting lost.” Jasper stated getting annoyed with Monty for having a conversation with himself. “Speak to me, not yourself,” He used his hands to point between the two of them to make a point.

 

“What are you guys doing over here?”

 

 Jasper’s face dropped as he looked up to Lincoln standing right next to Monty’s chair, “We told you yesterday… Research, remember?”

 

Lincoln crossed his arms in front of him and stated smugly, “Well, you are going to be sitting there for a very long time.”

 

“Why do you say that?” Monty looked up from his chair.

 

“They have already come and gone.” Lincoln stated looking between the two of them waiting to see what their new excuse was going to be.

 

“What? Where did they go?” Jasper asked cutting off any chance for Monty to speak.

 

Lincoln shrugged his shoulders, “I saw them grab weapons and then go into the forest.” He pointed in the general direction that they went off too.

 

Monty’s shoulders dropped, “Well that sucks.”

 

“So back to work then,” As they were getting off of their makeshift chairs Lincoln got a look at them. “Actually, did you make those?”

 

Jasper looked back over at Lincoln as he put the last berry in his mouth, “Yes.”

 

“If you two do not want to build houses, you could make more of those… Oh and beds too.” He asked hopeful as most of the warriors did not enjoy building the stuff for the inside.

 

Monty looked to Jasper and he nodded, “Sure, we’ll do that.”

 

“Alright, it’s settled.” He clapped his hands together. “Back to work,” He announced before turning to go in the direction he came from.

 

XXXXXXXX

 

Meanwhile, in the forest…

 

Clarke and Lexa were wandering around in the words, “Lexa, what are we doing out here? I thought we would be training some more.” She asked as she almost tripped over a rock.

 

“We’re here to work on that.” Lexa pointed at the movement Clarke just did.

 

“What, the fact that I’m a little bit clumsy?” Clarke asked not seeing where this was going.

 

“No, we need to work on your-“

 

“Whoa…” Clarke cut off Lexa as she noticed a cliff not too far from them. Wanting to see where it went she moved past the remaining trees to step closer to the edge. Looking down she could see a river not too far below them. It was only a few meters but still a drop that could injure you if you didn’t land properly.

 

Lexa came out next to Clarke, “Be careful of that river. If you get sucked under by the currents, it will take you days to get back to camp. I have lost many warriors to it.”

 

Clarke nodded, “Got it, do not go in that particular river.”

 

“It is unwise. As I was saying, we are out here to work on your agility while in battle. You are too stuck in one place. You will surely lose if you do not move more Clarke,” Lexa stated learning that over the last two days.

 

“So what, we’re going to run around in the woods? I’ve run around in the woods enough to know that’s not really going to change how I move in battle.” Clarke pointed out remembering all the times she’s had to run around this forest. She couldn’t count the many times she was chased by a giant gorilla, grounders, acid fog, mountain men or reapers.

 

Lexa shook her head, “No, I’m going to train you in the art that makes my people known as the tree people.”

 

“You don’t mean…” She looked up into the trees feeling very unsure of what Lexa was going to say.

 

Lexa nodded, “Yes Clarke, I’m going to teach you how to move in the trees without anyone knowing you are up in the trees.”

 

“Yay…” She groaned knowing full well that she was going to get very injured today.

 

“Clarke, I have watched you the last couple of days. If I did not believe that you could do this, I would not even suggest it.” Lexa pointed out knowing that she clearly needed to give Clarke an ego boost.

 

It didn’t really help Clarke feel better about the situation at all but she knew that Lexa was going to make her do it anyway so she might as well just suck it up and do it. _How hard could it be?_ She thought to herself wincing as she looked up into the trees.

 

XXXXXXXX

 

It was much harder than Clarke had first thought it would be. She knew it would be hard, she knew she would get a little injured but she never thought it would be this bad. Every time she climbed back up to lower branches, she would find her balance and then jump but every time she did that either the branch she was on snapped or the branch she was jumping too would snap. The common element of each jump however, was falling to the ground and getting yet another cut or bruise.

 

Clarke looked up into the trees from her position lying on the ground, “I’m never going to get this!” She groaned out in agony of feeling all the scrapes and bruises from falling on her ass or her knees every time she fell from the trees.

 

Like a monkey, Lexa hung above Clarke upside down hanging from a branch with her legs, “Clarke, you are not focusing enough.” Using her right arm she reached up and gripped the branch to remove her legs and drop to the ground next to Clarke. She put out her right arm to help Clarke get back on her feet. “You need to feel the weight of your body, you need to be able to predict ahead of time which branches are going to support you and which are not. When you are running from a creature of the forest, you do not have time to stop each time. If you do not learn, this will continue.” She said motioning to the fact that Clarke was sweeping off all the twigs and leaves that covered her jacket and pants.

 

“Okay, well I need to take this off. I think it’s the problem.” She removed the sheath the sword was in on her back and then took off her iconic blue jacket before putting the sword back on her back. Once the sword was placed snugly back on her back, she hanged her jacket on a nearby tree. Now she was in her form fitted long sleeve shirt.

 

Lexa felt a little warmer than she probably should at the curves of her favorite lady. _Focus Lexa. Get it together. Focus on the training only._ She berated herself. “O-Okay, do you want to try again then?”

 

Clarke nodded with more determination. She climbed back up the tree after Lexa and found a suitable branch that she was pretty sure wouldn’t break. Jumping up on it a little to test it, the branch didn’t break, then she looked over to a nearby tree and launched off the tree landing successfully on the branch. “Oh my god! I did it. Did you see that Lexa?” She was jumping up and down and without really realizing it the force broke the branch thus causing her to fall yet again. After landing on her feet, the momentum knocked her forward onto her knees and then onto her hands. The fall wasn’t as bad as previous ones, but it still hurt.

 

“Well, you got to the next tree. That is still an improvement,” Lexa offered her opinion.

 

There was no groaning, no moaning, Clarke just got back up and climbed back up into the tree, “I just proved that I can do this, I just got a little bit excited. This time will be different.” Once she was up at the same level as Lexa, she tried again. This time she paid a little more attention than she did before. Moving around the tree trunk, she found the sturdiest branch. Then she moved out onto it, not too far that she could slip off of it but far enough that she could get the best reach for the next branch. Taking in a deep breath, and slowly letting it out of her mouth, she centered her gravity.

 

Lexa watched the way Clarke was preparing to jump and felt a sense of pride because that was something she couldn’t teach. She could have tried to help Clarke figure out a way to find her center of gravity but the best way was from trial and error. Sure, she gave Clarke pointers on what to look for but in the end it came down to the person doing it. They needed to find their own way and from what Lexa was witnessing, Clarke had found it. She watched Clarke jump from tree branch, to tree branch, moving along the branches and slipping around tree trunks to get access to other tree branches on the other side. Lexa followed her from a couple trees next to her to keep track of her movements.

 

Clarke finally stopped at a tree and waited for Lexa to catch up to her. “What a rush. That was much more fun that I originally had thought.”

 

“You are only saying that because you have not fallen on the ground in a while.” Lexa stated knowing Clarke could not have believed that she’d just done that.

 

The sky leader nodded, “True, but it was still fun.”

 

“Question is do you want to continue practicing down on the lower branches or move up higher?” Lexa asked wanting to move their training up higher into the trees. “Watching you for the last several minutes, without falling I believe that you could move up higher but only if you believe you can because falling is not an option up there.”

 

Clarke looked up to the higher branches understand what Lexa meant. Falling would mean death; it wouldn’t mean a couple of bruises here and there. “How about I’ll try one more time and if I don’t fall, we’ll move up?”

 

“If that is what you wish,” Lexa nodded.

 

With that Clarke was off, she was moving around in a small area from tree to tree to tree, moving toward the edge of the forest near the cliff to the river and back toward the area they began. She moved with ease now, making it look easy. Making it look like she grew up doing this. Clarke was so caught up in movements, that she hadn’t noticed where Lexa went. “Lexa, where did you go?” She looked around for the commander not seeing her anywhere.

 

“Look up Clarke,” Lexa suggested from somewhere above the blonde.

 

Clarke did just that and looked up, “Have you been up there this entire time?” She asked feeling like a bit of an idiot for losing track of the commander.

 

Lexa nodded, “Yes I have. I wanted to see how you would do without any distractions of another person around. Do you think you are ready to come up higher?”

 

Clarke let go of a breath she wasn’t aware she was holding in before looking to the ground and then back up at Lexa and finding the determination to take that leap and climb higher. Moving in the branches she was able to get much higher up in the trees. The distance to the ground was significantly farther down then she’d maybe like for it to be but if this would help her in the challenge, she would do anything.

 

Lexa noticed the look on Clarke’s face, “Are you alright?”

 

“Yes, I’m fine.” She pushed back the small fear she had of the possibility of her falling to her death right here and now.

 

“When you are ready to move Clarke, go for it. I will not rush you as we are up much higher and if you are not ready that could result in death.” Lexa pointed out jumping to another branch attached to another tree to give Clarke some space.

 

Clarke took in her surroundings; she could feel the wind blowing through the trees and through her hair, she felt the strength of the tougher branches below her feet but most of all she didn’t focus on how high she was. She knew that if she did, that would be all she could focus on. So she made a point to not think about it. Obviously she knew it was there, she knew how high up she was but it wasn’t a factor in the moving through the trees. Once she felt ready she did it, she took a leap and she landed on a nearby branch. With ease she was able to move from branch to branch just like she had on the lower branches.

 

Everything was going fine until one moment. Clarke had come across a branch that didn’t look as strong as it was, it broke under her feet. She could feel the branch break with every fiber of her being, from her feet feeling the vibration of the branch break, to her body not having anything to stand on anymore. For a moment, a split second of a moment Clarke thought this was the end. She was going to fall to her death. This was it. There would be no challenge. There would be no more training and most of all she wasn’t going to be able to tell Lexa how she felt. But then something caught her and at first she wasn’t sure what just happened. Her feet were dangling on nothing and she could see the fallen branch several meters down on the ground below. Finally looking up to what caught her, she connected with green eyes.

 

“Clarke!” Lexa yelled again noticing that Clarke was in shock at the moment and probably missed the first time she spoke.

 

Finally getting her bearings, Clarke nodded and Lexa helped hoist her back up onto the branch she was on. Looking her over, Lexa asked, “Are you okay?”

 

Clarke nodded feeling like her heart was going to beat right out of her chest, the adrenaline of the whole situation still pumping in her veins. “I think so,” She kept taking in deep breaths and letting them go. “How-How did you…?” She was at a loss for words looking upon the person who prevented her from falling to her death.

 

“Clarke, we are higher up yes but I was not going to let you jump around without being there just in case you did fall. I hoped that you would not fall but I also knew that it could happen.” Lexa explained to the best of her abilities feeling a bit of adrenaline as well because she almost lost someone she cared deeply for. However, she was not going to show the worry. She couldn’t. She had promised herself, that there was going to be no more mister nice guy for training. That didn’t mean that she would let Clarke fall to her death though.    

 

“Well, I’m glad that you were there. That would not have been a fun way to go.” Clarke shook her head thinking about dying that way. “All I know is that if the roles were reversed, I don’t think I could pull you up so make sure you do not fall okay?” Clarke asked with a hint of teasing to her voice because she knew that the roles would never be reversed.

 

Lexa couldn’t help the hint of a smile on her face, “Clarke, I have been doing this most of my life. I can assure you that I will not fall.”    

 

“Good,” Clarke nodding already knowing the answer to her question but hearing it meant even more. “Can I ask you something?”

 

Lexa nodded, “Yes.”

 

“I’ve never seen you or your people use the trees to get around except for the times when our two people were at war, so why would you be called the tree people?” Clarke asked honestly because most of the movement she’d ever seen of them was on horseback.

 

“Clarke, I had people in the trees from the moment your ship landed in my territory.” Lexa stated honestly knowing there was no use in hiding it.

 

Clarke looked at her confused and shocked, “What… the entire time?”

 

Lexa nodded, “Why do you think it is that when your people tried to escape your camp, my warriors were able to kill one of you so easily? I realize that Lincoln gave you a heads up but my people were still in the trees. Those were not the scouts that Lincoln warned you of, those were the people living in the trees the entire time.” Noticing Clarke’s shock, she added, “If we did not have to deal with the winter months, we would live in the trees the entire time but unfortunately we cannot. We use the trees to spy on our enemies and at times they can be faster to travel.”  

 

Her mind was racing; so many thoughts were running through Clarke’s mind in this moment, she let one question slip her mind. One she wasn’t sure she wanted the answer to, “Are you saying that you could have killed us at any time you wanted?”

 

“No, they were not there to kill. They were there to watch and learn. My three hundred warriors were there to kill you.” Lexa would not say what killed them because as much as it irked her that this sky leader in front of her had outsmarted her, Clarke had also taken over her heart. Learning that Clarke had killed all of her warriors single-handedly impressed her more than it made her want to kill Clarke. To this day, she still felt like that. The day she found out Clarke was a woman and not a man made it that much better because it showed that great leaders had been born out of the sky as well as the ground.  

 

“Yeah… I had to make a choice. My people over your warriors…” Clarke trailed off.

 

“Do not apologize, Clarke. We were at war. Sacrifices must be made when at war, I know you know that.” Lexa reminded Clarke of a previous conversation they had after Tondc.  

 

“Right,” feeling much better Clarke got up from where she was sitting on the branch with her legs dangling. “I think I’m ready to try again. Want to race?” Clarke asked changing the subject completely.

 

Lexa approved the subject change as it was reminding her of the time of her life before she’d met Clarke, “You want to race me? Do you feel confident enough that you will not fall because I cannot race you and watch your back?”

 

Clarke nodded, “I think I learned my lesson. I do not want to go through that again. How about, we have to get from here to that weird looking tree over there?” Clarke pointed to a tree several meters away, closer to the edge of the forest line leading to the river but not right at the edge. “Ready… Set Go!” She jumped into a run… Well as best one could run up in the trees. Lexa got up from leaning against the main part of the tree and raced after Clarke. It was easy for her to catch up and pass Clarke. She didn’t want to get too far ahead because she still worried that Clarke might lose her footing again and fall so she was being half competitive and half worrisome for Clarke’s safety. However, right before they got to the tree, Clarke all of a sudden stopped. “What is it?” Lexa asked Clarke noticing her face squint in confusion.

 

“I think I heard something,” Clarke moved to get closer to the edge of the forest so she could see over the river but before she could get too close there was what may have sounded like a rather large explosion. Next thing she knew the ground was shaking and the trees the two of them were on near the edge of the forest line were lifting up.

 

As the ground was lifting up, the trees the two were on were falling; the roots of the trees in the area were lifting out of the ground and falling toward the cliff. Clarke fell off her tree and ended up sliding toward the edge crashing into some rocks along the way. Right before the edge she was able to grab onto a small tree, her feet and butt dangling off the edge of the cliff. “Phew…” Clarke looked off the edge to the river still feeling the ground moving underneath her. She used both of her arms to pull herself up so that her butt was just on the edge.  

 

Lexa watched the ordeal in front of her until she leaned too far and lost her footing and her grip on the tree. From the momentum and the movement, she wasn’t able to land on her feet; she landed rather hard on her right shoulder before rolling toward the cliff leading to the river. The ground was lifting making the part looking out to the river lower, making it much steeper than it was before. From her injury, Lexa couldn’t see where she was going as she collided with loose rocks along the way, she couldn’t grasp onto anything to get her bearings so she just continued to roll. She could tell that the edge was coming; she could feel the cool air from the river until something caught her. Looking up she noticed Clarke grasping at her left arm, without hesitation, she grabbed hold of Clarke’s wrist to make for a better hold.

 

The movement had pulled Clarke’s butt off the edge causing her to dangle as well. It was like déjà vu for Clarke except they were in the opposite situation, Clarke holding onto Lexa. Lexa had told her to stay away from this river and now they were both hanging from the cliff to it. She didn’t know how she was going to get Lexa back up onto the cliff. She could feel the tree she had her left arm wrapped around starting to lift from the ground. It could be any moment from now before they would lose their anchor and both fall to the river and potential death. The waves of the river looked intense and even Lexa had stated she’d lost several warriors to this very river.

 

What would happen if Lexa fell into it? What if they both fell into it? Would they both survive or would they both perish?

 

Lexa tried to use her right arm to reach for the cliff but she got an intense sharp pain that shot from her hand all the way through into her shoulder. A pain she’d never felt in all of her life. She looked around and found some bearing looking up at Clarke; she looked at Clarke to try to distract her from the pain. Finally looking past the pain, she was able to take in the situation. The situation was that if she did not find a way to get up onto the cliff, she and Clarke would surely fall to their death. She could see the look on Clarke’s face, the look of someone losing the grip on the branch keeping them from falling off the cliff. In this moment, Lexa had to make a choice. One she did not want to make.

“Clarke!” She got Clarke’s attention. “You need to let me go!” She yelled up to Clarke and for the first time, she didn’t care about her emotions showing. She didn’t care that Clarke could see the tears in her eyes, the same tears streaming down her face. It didn’t matter. In this moment, all that mattered was making sure Clarke was safe and in this moment, Clarke holding onto Lexa was not going to save her. It was going to bring Clarke down with her.

 

“I’m not letting you go Lexa!” Now her emotions were showing and she too didn’t care what it looked like. “We can do this! If we can just survive this tremor I could find a way to get you up this cliff. Don’t give up on me!” She yelled at Lexa trying to convince the leader she was holding onto but also herself. The branch was breaking, she could feel it. She tried to grab onto it a little differently and she almost lost her grip altogether.    

 

“Clarke! You cannot hold onto me and keep yourself safe.” She swallowed back some saliva getting stuck from the emotions, “You!” Her lips trembled, “Need to let me go! I can’t be the reason you die here today!” Lexa continued to stare into Clarke’s soul trying to tell her everything without saying anything.

 

Clarke looked away briefly as she was losing grip on the tree, her arm was losing grip on it. She dropped a little to grab onto it with her hand. Looking back to Lexa, “I’m not letting you go. I’m not doing it Lexa. I can’t do it.” Tears that were streaming down her face were falling down onto Lexa.

 

“I know you can’t!” Lexa barely got out but she knew Clarke heard her. There may be all kinds of sounds, ground rumbling, waves crashing below them, trees falling, but with all those sounds, they were able to hear each other. Over all of it they could hear what the other was saying. They could see the pain and the hurt and the sorrow that each other were feeling. They could see the emotions on each other’s faces. Lexa could clearly see that Clarke was not going to let go of her and if the roles were reversed Lexa wouldn’t let Clarke fall either but she also knew that if Clarke did not let go of her, they’d both die. “Clarke, you mean the world to me,” Love was always weakness to Lexa but in this moment, her ideals went out the window. “I wish I did not have to do this.”

 

“Lexa, what are you talking about?” Clarke asked looking between the cliff and Lexa.

 

“I’m sorry Clarke,” Lexa kept her gaze on Clarke no matter how difficult it was as she loosened her grip on Clarke’s wrist so that the only thing keeping her attached to Clarke was Clarke holding onto her.

 

Clarke could feel her grip on Lexa coming undone as she felt Lexa’s hand stop gripping onto her, “What are you doing!? You can’t do this!” She could barely see from all of the tears in her eyes. “LEXA!!!” Echoed in the area as she watched in slow motion as her grip on Lexa finally gave out and the commander slipped from her grip. In slow motion, she watched her fall; she watched the emotion on her face. In that moment, Clarke had to make a decision; she had to make a choice. She had a split-second to make up her mind. She knew she could pull herself up onto the cliff now that she wasn’t holding onto Lexa but she also knew that if she did nothing Lexa would die.

 

She had a split-second, a split-second that would change everything.

 

She knew all the things she could do, all the things that would make sense but she didn’t want to make sense, she wanted to make the decision that no one could predict. So she did the one thing that she didn’t think she would do, she let go of the branch… She let go of the support that could save her and she fell after Lexa… She didn’t know if she would live, she didn’t know if this would be the last moment she’d have on this planet. She didn’t know… but she didn’t care because she knew that she wouldn’t regret going after the woman she had such intense feelings for.

 

She splashed into the water after Lexa and then everything went dark…


	9. Day 3 (Part 2)

**_DAY 3 CONTINUED…_ **

****

Blinking a couple of times, Clarke opened her eyes and stared up at blue sky. She couldn’t remember what happened; all she could think about was the hard rough rocks that were under her back. Pushing off from the rocks, she pushed herself into a sitting position. Finally, she could feel the dampness of her clothes sticking to her skin. Reaching back, she felt the hilt of her sword still attached to her back. However, the movement was a bit much as she brought her hand to her forehead in an attempt to stop the spinning. On top of still being wet, she could feel extra dampness, pulling her hand back so she could look, she saw red. “Great, I’m bleeding.” She announced to no one in particular.

 

Looking around, she took in her surroundings. She was sitting on the beach of some kind of body of water, with multiple rivers leading to it as well as a waterfall not too far from her. It was beautiful to look at, the water splashing off of each rock until it met the body of water underneath it, adding to it was this rainbow effect that the sunlight was creating reflecting off of the water.

 

As her eyes followed the water crashing down all of the rocks, her eyes met with someone else on the rock beach not too far from her. “Lexa…” She barely got out in a whisper as everything came back to her in full force. She brought her hand up to her forehead and closed her eyes as all of the memories came back, flooding her mind like a wave crashing against the rocks. The earthquake, falling off of the trees they were in, dangling off of the cliff and of course that fateful moment. The moment Lexa let go of her. Even the moment of her letting go of the tree and falling in after Lexa. She even remembered hitting the water but after that she didn’t know what happened. Confusion overtook her face as she opened her eyes realizing that she had no idea how she got where she was now. If she went unconscious, then who saved them? It was clear looking over at Lexa that she didn’t do it… So who saved them? Or what saved them?

 

Clarke shook it from her mind, she couldn’t think about that right now. Right now, all she could think about was Lexa. Getting up on her feet, she went to take a step and almost fell back on the ground as a sharp pain shot through her right ankle. “Ow… Ow.. Ow…” She jumped up and down in agony on her left foot. Carefully she moved toward Lexa stepping on her right foot with not too much pressure but mostly just hopping around until she got close enough to Lexa and got down on her knees to crawl the rest of the way.

Lexa was lying on her back with her eyes shut and her skin marked with various scrapes and cuts probably from tumbling down the river. Quite quickly, Clarke noticed that something was very wrong with Lexa’s right arm but she didn’t care about the injury right now. In this moment, she wanted to know one thing and one thing alone. One thing that she wasn’t sure she wanted to know in the first place but she needed to know. Taking two fingers she carefully brought them to Lexa’s neck looking for a pulse. At first she couldn’t find a pulse and tears began to well up in her eyes because the thought crossed her mind that Lexa may be dead. Then when she was about to give up hope, she found it. She could feel a steady heartbeat. The tears in her eyes fell, without any thought; they fell because she couldn’t be more relieved in her life.

 

After a few moments, a thought occurred to her, “I need to find shelter…” Clarke looked around now realizing that she needed to find a place for her and Lexa until Lexa woke up because Clarke had no idea where they were. She would have no way of getting them back to their camp without Lexa so she knew she needed to wait for the commander to wake up. In hopes that she would know where they are and be able to direct them home.  

 

Looking toward the waterfall, Clarke could kind of see what looked like a path leading to behind it. Without much hesitation, she got up and walked as best she could over to the waterfall not too far away too investigate it. Once she got up the path and got behind the waterfall, she discovered a small cavern. One that they could use as shelter until Lexa awoke. It would provide cover, for any animals or people that may come by there. Walking back to Lexa, she found some branches and made a makeshift gurney to pull Lexa to the cave because she knew that with her ankle and with Lexa’s injuries that she would not be able to pull Lexa there herself.

 

After a lot of issues with the branches breaking, and Lexa constantly falling off the gurney, Clarke tripping over her own feet, she was able to get them both into the cavern.

 

Once in the cavern, Clarke manoeuvred Lexa around until she got her sitting up against the cave wall. It wasn’t ideal but because Clarke didn’t feel comfortable having her lying down because she knew she needed to go out and hunt for food. At least this way it appeared that Lexa was awake so that if anything came by, they wouldn’t try anything. Finally, she took note of Lexa’s injuries. It looked like Lexa had dislocated her right shoulder as well it looked like she may have broken her wrist. “You must have gotten your arm caught in something in the river,” Clarke noted looking at the injury. She wanted to try and align it but she didn’t have the right tools so she made a point to remember to grab vine and branches to make a splint until they got back to their camp. The shoulder would have to wait until Lexa woke unfortunately because she didn’t want to try and put it back just in case Lexa woke in the middle of it. That could make it worse and Clarke didn’t know if she could deal with worse. Besides those injuries she didn’t look too bad except for the scrapes probably from the rocks going down the river.

 

Clarke knew she needed to go out and hunt but she also knew she couldn’t if she didn’t get her own injuries under control. Using the pieces of branches, she made herself a little split for her ankle. It didn’t appear broken, only severely sprained which she was thankful for because anything worse could have been bad. Getting back up on her feet, she took one more look at Lexa before going out of the cavern to hunt. She didn’t like leaving an unconscious Lexa, but she also knew that if she didn’t leave to get food, they could both starve and she didn’t want that. Once out in front of the cave, she used the sleeve of her shirt to wipe away the blood on her forehead. Looking at the water below her, it looked like the cut had stopped bleeding for now so she was just going to leave it to the open air and hope for the best.

 

Taking one more look back at the cavern, she made her way into the woods to get some food…

 

XXXXXXXX

 

Way back in the forest where Clarke and Lexa were training, a group of sky people as well as grounders were roaming the forest in search of whatever had fallen from the sky. They had all seen it fall in these woods as well as felt the earth shake in the process. The ground shaking didn’t cause any damage in their combined village, but most of them knew that Clarke and Lexa were in these woods and needed to find out if they were alright as well as determine the cause for it.

 

The combined group included: Indra, Octavia, Bellamy, Kane and Ryder. It was just a scouting mission for now. They needed to find out what happened and then come back later if needed with more people.

 

“I found something!” Octavia called out to anyone who could hear her in the vicinity.

 

Bellamy came running over, “What did you find?” He asked worried that something may have happened to the two leaders because they hadn’t come across them yet in these woods.

 

She picked up the blue jacket lying on the ground and turned to show Bellamy.

 

“Is that-“ Bellamy began before Octavia cut her off.

 

“…Clarke’s jacket? Yes, it is.” Looking it over, she pondered, “Why would she leave it here?”

 

“Over here!” Indra’s voice could be heard from a brief distance away.

 

Bellamy and Octavia made their way through the forest out in the open area leading to the cliff to the river. “What did you find?” Octavia asked not letting Bellamy get a word in.

 

Indra’s jaw clenched looking at the very familiar piece of armour in her hand. Bellamy and Octavia’s eyes followed her eyesight and also recognized the piece of silver that was clearly from the shoulder guard that a certain leader always had on her shoulder. “This is the commanders,” Indra stated the obvious handing it to Octavia before walking over to the edge and looking over it when her eye caught onto something else on a branch near the edge.

 

“If this is a piece of Lexa’s armour and this is Clarke’s jacket, where are the people that they belong too?” Octavia’s face was covered with worry. She may be this badass grounder second able to cut down anyone with her blade but when it came to people she cared for she could not keep her emotions to herself. No matter how many times Indra told her to be more careful about her emotions, she couldn’t grasp that lesson.

 

“This is not good,” Indra mumbled to herself recognizing the material in her hand as she looked over the edge connecting the dots of what happened to her commander and the sky leader.

 

Octavia looked over to Indra and noticed what could only be described as worry on her face. An emotion her trainer had barely shown. “Indra, did you find something else?” She asked walking close to Indra looking over at the raging river below. “Wait, that looks like a piece of Clarke’s shirt.”

 

Indra nodded, “I believe it is.”

 

“Where did you find it?” Octavia asked as Bellamy just looked upon the situation not sure what to say or how to act.

 

“On this branch right here,” Indra pointed to the general area of where she had found it.

 

Octavia’s mind was spinning; she too was now realizing what happened to their two leaders, “Wait… If you found it there…” She pointed at the twig barely hanging onto the cliff. “Does that mean Clarke and Lexa fell off the cliff into that river?” She looked upon Indra hoping that she had gotten it wrong.

 

“I believe so,” Indra answered without question. She didn’t think they fell, she knew they fell off the cliff because all of the evidence was pointing there, from a piece of Lexa’s armour on the ground not too far from the edge to Clarke’s shirt in the branch. It all made sense to Indra that that was what happened here.

 

“Are we going to go after them then? From that fall, they have to be injured and alone,” Octavia asked wanting to know what their next move was going to be.

 

Indra clenched her jaw again as she shook her head side to side before responding with no emotion whatsoever, “No, we will not.”

 

“Indra, I know that I’m not supposed to question you but Clarke is my friend and Lexa is our commander, I need to know. Why? Why aren’t we going to go after them,” She questioned her trainer knowing full well that she could get in trouble for questioning her but in this moment she did not care.

 

Looking away from the river, Indra looked right at Octavia, “We are not going to go after them because we have no way of knowing where they could be. They could be at the end of the river or maybe they were able to get to a shore not too far from here. We could be searching for days, week’s even months and never find them or get lost trying to find them while they get back to our village. It is not worth losing warriors to find them. If they are alive, they will have to find their own way back.” Indra explained wanting no more questions about it. Once she was sure there would be no more questions, she walked away to go toward the area that Kane and Ryder were heading to find the mysterious object that hit the ground.

 

Octavia looked out at the river holding all of the pieces of clothing and armour realizing that she may never see Clarke ever again. At first she stared out at the river in hope that Clarke would find a way back to them when an overwhelming amount of anger took over her especially when she felt a hand on her shoulder.

 

“O, Clarke will find her way back. She’s strong,” Bellamy tried to reassure his sister.

 

Abruptly, Octavia turned around knocking the hand on her shoulder off. Bellamy almost stumbled over at the sudden motion but he backed up giving Octavia space. “This!” Octavia motioned to the stuff in her hands and the situation around them, “Is your fault!”

 

Opening and closing his mouth, “I…” He didn’t know how to respond to that accusation.  

 

“You couldn’t keep your mouth SHUT!” Octavia was fuming. If it was possible for fire to come out of her ears, it would have been right now. “I may not have liked what Clarke did about the missile that hit Tondc but at least I could keep it to myself! But no, you couldn’t. No, YOU had to open your mouth in front of everyone!” She didn’t care who could hear her, she didn’t care that she was yelling so loud that the ark could probably hear. Her emotions were running wild in this moment and she didn’t care about the consequences. All she knew in this moment was that she was pissed at her brother, nothing more.

 

“Octavia I…”

 

Octavia shook her head, “Don’t you DARE Octavia me! You might be older than me but that doesn’t excuse what you did and what you’ve caused. All of this is your fault!”

 

“I didn’t know this…”

 

“You didn’t know…” She trailed off feeling the tears start to build up in her eyes from her anger getting the best of her. “That’s right, you don’t think Bell! You just do and hope for the best! What did you think was going to happen?!”

 

He looked around looking for an answer somewhere around him.

 

“That all of those grounders were just going to forget what you said. Forget the fact that Clarke and Lexa knew about the missile. Did you really think that?! You put her in this situation. Clarke wouldn’t have even been out here if it weren’t for you! And now…” She trailed off thinking about what could have happened to Clarke as a tear fell from her eye. Her hand quickly swiped it away so that he wouldn’t try to comfort her more. “She might be dead because of you. THAT! IS! ON! YOU!!” Taking a breath, she got her emotions under a bit of control and looked him square in the eyes, “If she doesn’t come back… I will never forgive you!” With that she walked away from him in the direction Indra had gone leaving him with his thoughts on the edge of the cliff.

 

Bellamy stood there looking out at the river for a moment hoping that Clarke would live because Octavia was right. It was his fault. If he hadn’t said anything, or if he had pulled her aside instead of accusing the commander, Clarke would not be in this situation right now. She would not have been in these woods training for a challenge she wouldn’t be in had he kept his mouth shut. He knew that and now, he may have just lost his sister as well.

 

“Clarke, you need to come back,” He whispered out into the wind trying to convince himself that if he felt it enough that maybe the idea would make it to Clarke and she’d make it back. Before he turned around and went in the direction that Octavia and Indra went.

 

Bellamy caught up to the rest of the group as they looked upon a metal object in the middle of the forest in a crater.

 

“What is that?” Kane asked to no one in particular as they walked closer to the object.

 

Bellamy jumped out in front of them to stop their movements, “I think that we should get an expert out here first before anyone goes near that thing. We don’t know what it is, let alone what could happen if any of us touch it.”

 

Kane looked upon Bellamy in agreement, “You’re right. We should get Raven and Wick out here to look at this.”

 

Indra nodded in agreement, “I agree. We do not know who else may have seen this fall from the sky and who else might be on their way here. We must get them here as soon as possible so that we may decide if we are taking back to camp or not. We do not want other clans getting their hands on what could be a weapon.”

 

Kane picked up his radio and within a few minutes he was able to get a hold of Raven so that she and Wick could come to the crash site.  

 

 

Several minutes later, Raven and Wick appear with a grounder on horseback with a trailer so that if they felt the object could be moved, they could take it back to their camp.

 

“Okay, what do we have here?” Wick got close to the object and knocked his knuckles against the metal exterior.

 

“Wick! What are you doing?” He looked at her confounded. “If that were a bomb, you could have just killed us all now.” Raven pointed out to him like it was the most obvious thing in the world.

 

“But it didn’t, and I knew we wouldn’t,” He gave her his winning smile. “See look at this,” He pointed to the markings on the side of the object.

 

She leaned over to get a closer look at the markings, “Scratches. Really Wick, you wanted me to get a closer look at scratches?”

 

He shook his head, “Yes because you do know what that means right?”

 

She looked at him confused, “Wick? Why would I have said you were an idiot for knocking on the metal object if I knew what that meant?” Just as he was about to tell her, she spoke up again, “Wait… You think that if it was a bomb, the scratches are a clear indicator that if it were going to explode, it would have already.” She pointed out seeing where he was going with it now.

 

He nodded with a smile on his face, “Exactly. I think we can move this thing safely.”

 

She looked back to find Kane standing not too far behind her, “We can get this thing out of here. It should be fine to move.”

 

He nodded his head to Bellamy and Ryder, “You two help them get this thing up on the trailer so we can get out here. As Indra had pointed out, we do not know who else could be out here to look at this.”  

 

Bellamy, Ryder, Raven and Wick were able to lift the object up onto the trailer that was behind the horse. With some careful manoeuvering, they were able to get the object back to camp.  

 

XXXXXXXX

 

After several trips Clarke was finally able to get all of the rabbits that she was able to catch as well as the wood needed for a fire and splint for Lexa’s arm into the cavern. The sun was just starting to go down and Clarke could see the orange and red from the sunset reflecting off of the lake creating a nice mirror effect that Clarke wanted to revel in but knew she had other things to do.

 

Once she had a fire going, she able to see better and decided to splint Lexa’s arm so that if the commander awoke she wouldn’t accidently move her wrist and make it worse. Carefully, she was able to get a couple of twigs attached to Lexa’s right arm with some vine. She nodded to herself at her nice work before going over to where she had put the rabbits and began skinning one of them to cook over the fire.

 

As she was skinning it, she could hear groaning behind her. Turning around she could see Lexa’s face squinting probably from the pain before her eyes opened up.

 

“Ugh…” Lexa groaned out not liking the pain she was feeling in her right side. Never in all of her life had she felt pain as bad as this moment right now. Looking around to see if anyone had saw, her eyes connected with Clarke’s and all of a sudden tears began to well up in her eyes.

 

Clarke could see what was happening and crawled over to where Lexa was and sat just to the right of Lexa’s legs. “What’s wrong?” She asked not sure how to respond to the emotions Lexa was showing all of a sudden.

 

“It is all my fault,” Lexa confessed. “You are here because of me.”

 

Clarke shook her head, “No, Lexa I let go of the branch to save you. I did that all on my own. It’s not your fault.”

 

Lexa shook her head, “But it is my fault. You may have done your own thing but I should have pulled away sooner. Maybe if I was not with you, you would not be here now.”

 

“Lexa, I wanted you to train me. I didn’t want Indra or Ryder, I wanted you,” Clarke confessed to the commander. She wasn’t sure if she meant to say it that way because it had a bit of a double meaning but she didn’t care.

 

Lexa couldn’t help a smile appear on her lips, “I know you always want me. That is why you were there, why you ended up there…” She trailed off as a tear fell from her eye. “People saw us together and automatically assumed that you knew…”

 

Now Clarke was getting confused. She wasn’t sure now what Lexa was talking about. “Lexa, what are you talking about? What did people assume?”

 

“They assumed you knew my secrets…” Lexa looked away toward the waterfall as she could feel more tears building up in her eyes starting to blur her vision.

 

“Your secrets? What secrets…” Clarke trailed off when she realized what Lexa was talking about. She wasn’t talking about the cliff. She was talking about…

 

Looking back at Clarke, Lexa admitted, “Costia, I am so sorry that I got you killed. When I became the commander I should have cut ties with you but I did not.” Another tear fell down her cheek, “I wanted to stay with you, and I needed someone to be there with me. I never thought…”

 

Clarke got up on her knees and placed a hand on each side of Lexa’s face to make the commander look at her, “Lexa, it’s me Clarke. Costia, is gone.” She tried to get Lexa to understand.

 

“I know you are gone. You are gone because of me. I loved you and I… Put you in harm’s way.” She answered looking right into Clarke’s soul.

 

Clarke pulled her hands back and sat back on her butt thinking to herself. _It must be the pain that is causing her to hallucinate her ex-love Costia._ She looked back at Lexa watching all of these emotions she’d never really seen the commander express take over her entire being. Never, in all the time had she seen the commander like this. She’d never seen Lexa show this many emotions. It was like Lexa was stuck in another time, like she was able to finally accept everything that’d happened to her in the past. Clarke was starting to see why Lexa created her motto: love is weakness. If this was how Lexa would have been if she dealt with her feelings, she would have surely died a long time ago. It made sense now why it was so important to Lexa not to show emotions.

 

Clarke decided to take advantage of the situation and pretend to be Costia to maybe help Lexa feel better. “It wasn’t your fault Lexa. I chose to be with you.”

 

Lexa breathed in sharply and let it go, “No, I should have broken ties with you the second I became commander. We both knew… We both knew that that could have happened. We watched the previous leader do the very same thing.” She confessed something she’d never told anyone.

 

“It wasn’t your fault,” Clarke tried to convince Lexa.

 

“We watched the commander do exactly what we did.” Lexa ignored Clarke and continued with the story of the commander before her, “We watched her fall in love, we watched as she broke apart when a warrior from the river clan had killed her love. The only difference was that she could not handle it and got herself in a situation that ended her life.” Lexa breathed in the phlegm plaguing her nose so that she might breathe through her nose rather than her mouth. “You might still be alive had we not done what they did…” Lexa wiped her cheek catching more tears falling from her eyes.

 

Clarke didn’t know how to respond to that. It was true, Costia might still be alive had they broke apart but Clarke also knew that Lexa would not be who she was if she didn’t go through that loss. “I don’t blame you Lexa.”

 

“You should blame me. I let my feelings get the best of me. No matter how many times Anya told me to keep my emotions under check, I could not with you. You meant the world to me and I let you get caught.” She barely got the last word out. “By the time I found out that she had you… I could not do anything about it.” More tears fell as she thought about the next part she needed to confess, “Before I knew it, your head was outside the gates of our village… I had lost you. Just like that. You were gone.”

 

Clarke did the only thing she felt she could say after that revelation, “I forgive you, Lexa.”

 

For the first time since Lexa opened her eyes, there were no more tears falling down her cheeks, there was only what Clarke could describe as relief in those emerald eyes. “You do? You can forgive me after everything I put you through?”

 

Clarke nodded, “Yes, I can forgive you. You did your best. I…” She wanted to say it for Costia but she didn’t know if she should because she obviously knew Costia had to feel it but Clarke didn’t feel that emotion yet. She didn’t want Lexa to assume she did as well but then she realized it was clear Lexa wasn’t in her right mind so she probably wouldn’t remember it coming from Clarke. “I loved you too, Lexa.” There Clarke said it hoping that Lexa was still in her state and still thought she was Costia and not who she actually was.

 

Lexa smiled again, “I loved you too Costia. You were my first love and even though my heart belongs to someone else now, I want you to know that I will always remember you, no matter what.” Lexa had confessed with so much love it overwhelmed Clarke.

 

She had never seen Lexa like this. So in love and so passionate about what she felt. It was strange and wonderful all at the same time. Clarke couldn’t help but to think about all of that passion being directed at her some point. “I will always be in your heart,” Clarke pointed out as she couldn’t help but let a tear fall from her cheek. All of these emotions and feelings they were talking about were getting to be too much for Clarke.

 

Lexa nodded in agreement, “Yes, you will always be in my heart.” A thought came to mind as a yawn took over her body feeling the pain start to take over as her emotions for the situation started to subside, “I think you would have liked her.”

 

“Liked who?” Clarke asked now confused as to who Lexa might have been referring too.

 

“Her name is Clarke. She is the one that my heart belongs to now.” Lexa confessed still in her hallucination even though she was practically calm now with no more tears running down her face. “I think you would have liked her. She’s smart, and brave, she’s made me make decision I would not have made without her being there. She’s made me a better leader, better than I could have ever imagined. I think you would have liked her…” She trailed off as the pain took over her again and she dozed off.

 

Clarke looked upon Lexa with a new found feeling for the commander. She wasn’t sure what this new feeling was but she was a little excited to explore it once the challenge was over. Hearing how deeply Lexa cared for her was not what she had expected to hear. Never in a million years did she think that would happen but it did and she wanted to know where it went. Hopefully when Lexa awoke next, she would know who Clarke was so that they might find their way back to their camp. So that they could get closer to the challenge, beat Cyrus and Clarke could finally tell Lexa how she felt. After hearing how Lexa felt for Costia and how much she blamed herself, Clarke did not want to put her feelings out there until she knew for sure that she would live past the next four days.


	10. Day 4 (Part 1)

**_DAY 4_ **

****

Clarke awoke the next day feeling a very sore. Sitting up she could feel each and every bruise and pain in her back and limbs. This was not going to be a good day and she knew it. She knew that if it was tough for her to sit up, it was going to be an even bigger struggle to start moving in the woods on their way back to camp. That was if… Lexa woke up and woke up feeling normal. Clarke didn’t know if she could deal with Lexa in that state again. Learning about Costia that way was not the way Clarke wanted to learn about Lexa’s old love. Sure, she had been curious about the brunette’s last love Costia but she didn’t want to learn that Lexa blamed herself for the loss. The only good that came from the whole ordeal was the fact that Clarke now fully understood why the commander was so closed off. Why it was so hard for her to open up. Why she made the decisions she made. Letting anyone get close enough for love was not an option for Lexa, and Clarke understood that now. So the fact that Lexa kissed her… spoke volumes now. Lost in thought Clarke didn’t notice in the corner of her eye someone was coming too.

 

Moving her head lazily side to side, Lexa finally opened her eyes and once she did all of the pain came to her in a wave. It felt like she was being burned by fire on her right arm. In all of her years as a warrior, as a commander, she had never felt pain like this before and she was trained not to show pain. However, in this instance she couldn’t stop the pain; she couldn’t distract her mind enough to move past it. It was just there and there was nothing she could do about it.

 

Finally Clarke was brought out of her thoughts when she could hear Lexa’s groaning from the great deal of pain she was most certainly in. She crawled over to Lexa sitting to the left of her legs trying not to disturb Lexa’s right arm. “Lexa, you need to breathe,” She pointed out noticing Lexa trying so hard not to breathe. “I know… I know it hurts to breathe but you need to.”

 

Lexa shook her head until she couldn’t hold it in anymore and let go of a breath, a breath that moved her shoulder and caused a sharp pain to shoot through her arm into her chest. She brought her left hand up to grip her shoulder trying to ease the pain but realizing quite quickly that it wasn’t right. “What is…” She groaned, “What is wrong with my…”

 

“You’ve dislocated your shoulder. If you lay down, I can try to realign it,” Clarke suggested putting a hand on Lexa’s right arm carefully.

 

“Try to realign?” Lexa asked unsure if she should trust the blonde in front of her but if she didn’t try something the pain probably wouldn’t end and she didn’t like that idea. Without much thought, she nodded her head.

 

Clarke backed up and moved out of the way, “Okay, I need you to lie on your back.”

 

Lexa did as she was told making sure not to jostle her arm too much. Clarke helped by guiding her right arm until Lexa was completely on her back.

 

“Okay, my mom has shown me a few techniques for this but I think because of your other injuries, we’re going to do it this way and because I haven’t had training on the other ways.” Clarke admitted not looking Lexa in the eyes.

“Do what you must….” Lexa gulped back the pain trying so hard not to breathe.

 

Noticing what Lexa was doing Clarke indicated, “If we’re going to do this, you need to stop holding your breath.”

 

No matter what, Lexa would not admit that it hurt, she would let her body show that she was in pain but there was no way she was going to say it herself. She needed to keep some of her dignity in this situation so she just nodded as she tried to let in brief breaths. Lexa’s left hand was gripping a nearby rock with all of her might trying to transfer some of the pain there because all of the tactics that she was trained about pain were not helping. Not in the slightest.

 

Clarke got into position and picked up Lexa’s right arm, “Okay, I need to move it this way.” Slowly she brought Lexa’s right arm out so that it made a ninety degree angle to her body. “I’m sorry,” she stuttered noticing the pain Lexa was holding back as she moved the arm. Moving around Clarke placed her right foot on Lexa’s side to get better grip. “Now normally, this way would be done by pulling your hand to pull the shoulder back in place but because of your injuries to your wrist I don’t want to cause more damage there so I’m going to try this by pulling at your elbow, okay?” Clarke asked wanting to make sure Lexa was okay with the change in position.

 

Lexa just nodded staring up at the cavern ceiling. She wanted to be strong, she wanted to face this pain but she couldn’t. She couldn’t seem to look at her arm.

 

“Okay, here we go… I’m going to count to three…” She indicated looking at Lexa and getting a nod. “One… Two…” On two, Clarke pulled Lexa’s elbow and with a relief Clarke could hear the shoulder pop back in place with a *pop*.

 

“Ugh…. I though you said on three,” Lexa groaned out as a sharp pain shot through her shoulder and Lexa couldn’t help but to bring her left hand up to her right shoulder and grip it but after a few moments, the pain began to subside. Obviously, it was still there but it wasn’t as bad as it was before. Now she could feel the pain in the rest of her arm but that pain doesn’t even compare to what she had felt in her shoulder. Carefully Lexa sat up and tried rolling her shoulder, with some difficulty and pain she was able too before Clarke stopped her.

 

“You need to take it slow, okay? I know you want to get up and fight but you can’t. You need to see a real doctor for that injury.” Clarke pointed out knowing that she wasn’t completely qualified for this.

 

Lexa nodded, “Of course. You are the expert here.” She tried breathing in and out and the pain was a bit more manageable. “Now, can you help me up? I need to move around.”

 

“First things first...” Clarke didn’t know how to ask what she needed to ask so she just asked it blatantly, “What is my name?”

 

Lexa looked at her confused, “What kind of question is that? Of course I know who you are.”

 

“Humour me Lexa. Who am I?” Clarke looked expectantly upon Lexa waiting for the answer she was sure to get because Lexa wasn’t acting the way she was the night before.

 

“Clarke… Clarke of the Sky People,” Lexa answered. “Now why would you ask me such a question?” She asked curiously.

 

Clarke moved to Lexa’s left side and wrapped an arm around Lexa’s middle to help her get to her feet, “Let’s just say you were not yourself last night and may have thought I was someone from your past,” She confessed not looking Lexa in the eyes as she looked around for something she could use as a sling for Lexa’s arm.

 

It was like Lexa knew what Clarke was looking for when she ripped the loose material hanging from her belt all the way around her and handed the black material to Clarke. “Here. Who did I think you were?” She asked wanting to know but a bit afraid of who she was going to say.

 

Clarke took the material, “Thank you.” And began making a sling out of it and tied it on her left shoulder. “Now that you’re up do you feel any other injuries or is it just your arm?”  

“Do not try to dissuade me from the question Clarke.” Lexa finally made eye contact with Clarke. “Who did I think you were?”

 

“No injuries besides your arm then, good. The fewer injuries we have trying to get back to Camp Jaha, the better,” Clarke avoided the question trying to walk away from Lexa when a hand on her left arm stopped her.

 

“Clarke…” Lexa urged her to answer her question. She did not want to ask again.

 

Without looking back at Lexa, she just looked at the water falling in front of the cave, “You thought I was Costia,” She barely got out in a whisper and wasn’t sure Lexa even heard her until she felt the hand release and the commander appear in front of her.

 

“I thought you were who?” Lexa was sure she heard her past love Costia but she had to make sure her ears were not betraying her. With all of the water she had gotten into her system, it wasn’t much of a stretch for her to think maybe she had heard wrong.

 

Clarke still would not look at Lexa, she wanted to make eye contact but she didn’t know how to tell Lexa about the night before so she repeated herself averting her eyes anywhere but on Lexa. “You thought I was Costia.”

 

Lexa froze; her ears did not betray her. She did hear correctly. “Did I… What did I…” She didn’t know what to ask, she didn’t know what to say to that revelation.    

 

Finally Clarke looked at Lexa, looked into her eyes knowing that Lexa wanted to know what happened but being who she was would never ask that question. Let alone know how to ask that type of question so Clarke answered anyway, “You blamed yourself for what happened to her. I never fully understood what you went through until last night. I-” She paused for a moment to figure out what she wanted to say. “I know that we both lost past loves, but I never knew how much you blamed yourself until that moment.”

 

Lexa listened intently to what Clarke was saying really taking it in because she hadn’t really thought about Costia in a long time. She had thought she’d gotten past what happened to her but obviously not. She had someone new in her life, someone she really cared about so she thought that she’d finally come to terms with what happened to Costia but this story Clarke was telling was clear that she had not fully accepted it.

 

“…So I tried to give you what you wanted. I forgave you. I wasn’t sure it was right that I was pretending to be someone I wasn’t but you seemed really broken up about it. I hope that’s okay?” Clarke asked not sure exactly how Lexa would respond to her pretending to be Costia.

 

“If I were in your place Clarke, I would have done the same…” Lexa admitted trying to put herself in Clarke’s shoes. If Clarke would have awoken and mistaken her for someone she blamed herself for killing, she’d have forgiven Clarke as well.

 

Clarke nodded, “Good because I didn’t really know what to do in that situation. I’m just glad you’re back to your old self.” She let a little smile appear on her lips.

 

Lexa nodded, “So, shall we go outside this cave and see where we are so that I can figure out how to get us home?” Lexa needed to move the conversation to something else as she could not talk about her past love with her hopefully future love anymore. It was too strange for her.

 

Clarke wiped at her eyes ridding herself of any tears that may have appeared in her eyes from the situation as she moved to exit the cave, “Yes that would be good. I’m hoping you know where we are because I have no idea.”  

 

Lexa followed Clarke out of the cave and down the rocks until she was on the lakebed rocks, “Hm… We may need to walk around a bit.” She looked around as they walked around on the rocks. Looking at Clarke concerned, “What happened to you?” Using her left hand she pointed at Clarke’s limping right foot.

 

“Ah, yes well it appears that I may have sprained my ankle at some point. Don’t worry; it should be fine in a day or so.” Clarke explained.

 

“If you are sure you are okay, I will drop it.” She notices Clarke nod so she turned back to walking around until she noticed a piece of her armour on the rocks, she looked up at Clarke as she felt the material in her hands, “So, how did you get us here anyway?”

 

Clarke looked at Lexa confused, “What do you mean? I thought you got us here.” She stated.

 

Lexa shook her head, “The last memory I have before waking up just a few minutes ago was when I…” She trailed off as she didn’t want to think about what happened. “When I let go of your hand…” she barely got out in a whisper as the memory plagued her mind. The moment she let go of Clarke’s hand. Releasing her grip on the grey material of Clarke’s shirt to the brief moment their hands touched before the only she could see was distance between the two of them. She was stuck in a daze when she felt a hand on her right arm.

 

“Lexa, I understand why you did what you did. I didn’t agree with it but I get it. You were trying to save me. Clearly, I don’t do well with people telling me what to do,” She moved her arms around motioning to everything around them. “I wouldn’t be here with you if I did.” Clarke noticed what might be called a smile appear on the commander’s lips. “However, if you didn’t save us and I didn’t save us… Then who or what got us here?”

 

Lexa went to shrug her shoulders forgetting her right shoulder was just in pain and a sharp pain shot through her being as she winced. She pushed the pain down and answered, “All that matters is that we are alive.”

 

They continue to wander around the area for several minutes before Lexa decided they should go back to the cave so that she could do some thinking. That’s what she told Clarke however; in actuality she thought Clarke should get off that ankle for a bit.  

 

Sitting back down in the cave, Clarke looked at Lexa, “So, do you know where we are?”

 

Lexa looked at Clarke trying not to show her uncertainty, “I am not completely sure where we are.”

 

“What? I thought you knew the lands, how do you not know where we are?” Clarke asked.

 

“I believe I just need a few moments to figure out where we are. It should be fine. Do not worry Clarke, it will come to me,” Lexa tried to convince Clarke that everything would be fine.

 

XXXXXXXXX

 

 

“Raven, we shouldn’t have to go outside of the fence to work on it!” Wick yelled at Raven as they were walking toward the gate that would inevitably lead them to the mysterious metal object outside of it. He stopped right before the gate, “That fence right there.” He pointed to it. “It’s there to keep us safe from what’s outside of it!”

 

A few grounders around him muttered something in Trigedasleng that were clearly meant to be an insult.

 

“Sorry, I didn’t mean you guys…” He tried to apologize as they stormed off.

 

“Good job Wick, now you’ve pissed off the very people we’ve aligned with.” Raven shook her head. “You’re an idiot.” She tried to walk past him when he continued speaking so she stopped to look at him.

 

“I’m an idiot,” He pointed to himself. “You are the one that is making us go out in this cold ass weather to work on an equally cold piece of metal outside. When we could easily be in our warm workshop but noooo….” He complained.

 

“Wick, do you know what that is?” She asked getting very irritated that he was questioning her motives. “Because I don’t know what it is! I don’t think it’s in anyone’s best interest to have a piece of tech that we know nothing about inside our place of home.”

 

“You know guys I was thinking maybe we could try using…” He trailed off as Monty finally looked up from his clipboard at the scene in front of him. “Oh… bad time…”

 

“Bad time,” Raven emphasized before looking back at Wick. “Actually, Monty maybe you could weigh in on this argument.” She moved to catch Monty before he walked too far away from them. “Wick here,” She pointed back at him, “He doesn’t understand why the object should be outside of the fence and not in our workshop, thoughts?” She used her eyes to convey that if he crossed her, she’d make him suffer.

 

“Um…. Uh… I…” Monty stumbled over his words. This was why he wasn’t good at talking to women. _Angry women are scary_. He thought to himself.  

 

“Use your words Monty,” She said through clenched teeth. “You agree with me right?” Raven asked him waiting not so patiently for his answer.

 

Wick finally walked over to where they were, “Raven, you’re scaring him.” Raven huffed crossing her arms in front of her. “Monty, it’s okay if you agree with me. We’ve been friends for a long time so I’m sure Raven will get over it if you side with me.” He smirked trying to convince Monty that his argument was better so that he could get out of this freezing weather.

 

“Well I think that for now it should stay outside the fence…” Monty was cut off by Raven.

 

“Wahoooo…. HA I told you Wick, I was right you were wrong,” She started to shake her hips and dance around as best she could with her bum leg. “How does it feel to lose Wick?”

 

Wick shook his head, “Haha…” He said feeling unimpressed.

 

“However,” Raven stopped dancing and looked at Monty to continue. “I do think that with proper examination, we should be able to bring it into the workshop sometime today.” He nodded his head agreeing with his statement.

 

“Ha, I told you Raven.” It was Wick’s turn to celebrate. He pushed her left shoulder playfully.

 

Raven’s mouth fell open in shock, “Really Monty? You couldn’t have at least let me celebrate in victory for five minutes. You had to ruin my fun at Wick’s expense. Thanks.” Raven huffed out in disappointment. “Come on, you guys let’s go.”

 

“What? I don’t get to celebrate.” He exclaimed chasing after Raven. “Raven, does this mean we’ll bring it in?”

 

“Monty’s right. If we can make sure it’s not going to explode or it can’t be triggered to explode, we’ll bring it into the lab because as much as I hate engineer’s, you’re right it is very cold out here.” She explained as she rubbed her hands together. “Monty, are you coming?” She called back to Monty still standing in the place they left him.      

 

“Wait, so then why did you fight me on the subject if you knew I was right all along?” Wick asked as they walked out the gate and toward the object.

 

Raven turned to him with her winning smile, “Wick, if I can mess with you. I’m going to mess with you.” She raised an eyebrow for extra effect. “Now let’s figure out, if this thing is a threat so we can get out of the cold.” She said as they approached the object sitting in what was Clarke and Lexa’s training ground.

 

Monty finally caught up to the two of them carrying the tool box, “Okay so as I was saying, I think we should…”

 

Again he was cut off by Raven, “Yeah yeah Monty, how about you let the professional handle this and if I need your help, I’ll let you know.” She turned to the object and moved to the other side to look at it. The height of it hid her face a little as she got down on her knees to examine it.

 

Monty leaned forward so that he was next to Wick’s ear, “She’s a bit of a firecracker isn’t she?”

 

“Yeah, she is but that’s what I like about her.” Wick whispered back.

 

“I heard that! Are you guys working or talking about me!” She yelled from the other side of the object.

 

Wick raised his eyebrows to Monty with a smile as he got down on his knees to look at the other side of the object.

 

XXXXXXXXXX

 

Lexa was sitting at the edge of the cave crossed-legged with her eyes closed trying to figure out where they were meanwhile Clarke was eating the rest of the rabbit she had cooked for them.

 

When finally Lexa opened her eyes, “I know where we are.”

 

“You do?” Clarke asked trying not to sound too surprised. She didn’t want Lexa to feel like Clarke didn’t trust that she didn’t know where they were.

 

“Yes. I would say that to the south about a half a day’s walk is The Marsh People and we need to go to the North East to get back to our camp. I am unsure of how many days it will take us with my arm and your leg. On a normal day, I would say it would take us about three days but with these injuries it could very well take longer.” Lexa explained turning her body back to Clarke to start gathering their things.

 

When the number of days finally hit Clarke, she stopped gathering their food and stared out blankly as a thought occurred to her. “Uh Lexa,” Lexa stopped her work and looked up to Clarke. “You said that it will most likely take more than three days for us to get back?”

 

Lexa nodded, “Yes, I do believe so.” She answered missing the fear on Clarke’s face.

 

“What does that mean for the challenge?” Clarke asked the question she didn’t particularly want to ask but needed an answer too. “Today is day four, if we aren’t back by day seven, what happens?”

 

“Well…” Lexa thought for a moment before answering. “In situations like these with a competitor not being there for the challenge, usually the person is either banned from ever coming back to camp or killed on sight.” She explained with very little emotion. “However, that is usually decided by the leader of that clan. Since the earth shook and we ended up here, the challenge will most likely be moved to a later date. It cannot happen without the leader there and with my being with you, it will happen when we get back.” Lexa added.

 

“Okay, well how does training work then? I mean you’re supposed to be training me but with your injuries… Does that mean we’d wait until we get back to camp so that I can be trained by Indra or maybe Ryder?” Clarke asked feeling a bit better about the challenge but becoming even more nervous because it meant she’d have to learn from someone else. That was something she wasn’t looking forward to because she’d gotten used to how Lexa trained her.

 

Lexa shook her head, “No, once we are back to camp the challenge will occur. I can still train you with my injuries. We are trained to learn how to fight with both arms, my dominant hand may be compromised but I still have my left arm. We have many days to get back to camp; you will be trained by then.”

 

“Got it,” She gulped nervously.

 

“Clarke, you do not need to be afraid. I will not let you go into that challenge unprepared,” Lexa indicated trying to calm Clarke’s nerves as she could see the fear in her eyes.

 

Clarke smiled weakly as she gathered her sword and placed it snuggly on her back. After picking up all of the food, they made their way out of the cave.

 

“Clarke, leave the last rabbit. We do not want anything to be able to track us. If we need food, we will hunt for it,” Lexa pointed out to Clarke.

 

“Good point,” Clarke agreed as she followed Lexa until she noticed Lexa wading into the lake. “Uh… Lexa, what are you doing?”

 

Lexa looked back at Clarke, with the water up to her knees, she pointed out, “Clarke, it will be much quicker if we go through the lake rather than around it.”  

 

“Right but, I haven’t had the best experiences with water here on Earth with monsters trying to eat us and all that…” Clarke confessed not feeling completely okay with going in the water.

 

“Clarke, we obviously were in this water and we are still here. It is fine. Now come on,” Lexa motioned with her hands as she walked further into the lake.

 

Clarke gulped nervously as she thought, _you can do this Clarke. It’s just water. Yeah, water._ Once the water was about mid-chest in height something occurred to her, “Uh Lexa…”

 

Lexa a little ways ahead, swam back to Clarke, “Yes… What is it now?”

 

“Well… There’s just one problem with this plan,” Clarke didn’t know how to say what she needed to say because she didn’t want to seem weak to Lexa.

 

Lexa waited for an answer, “Yes.”

 

“I… I don’t know how to swim,” Clarke confessed waiting for laughter to come from the commander or maybe some snickering or some snide remark about how one should know how to swim. However nothing came, Clarke peered at Lexa and she couldn’t read the look that was on her face. “Lexa, did you hear me?” Clarke asked wanting to make sure the commander heard her.

 

“I did not think this through. I am sorry Clarke. We will have to go around then as I cannot properly teach you how to swim in such a short time with these injuries. Come… We will take the long way…” Lexa admitted to her mistake. She didn’t think it completely through. All she was thinking was how to get back home the quickest not who she was with.

 

Clarke followed Lexa out of the lake. “So does this mean that if I live out the challenge, you’ll teach me to swim?” She asked felling a little hopeful.

 

“Clarke, you cannot think like that. If you do not think you can win then there is no point in my training you,” Lexa stared down at Clarke trying to make a point. “But yes, I would be honored to train you on how to swim.”

 

Clarke nodded, “Sweet does that mean-“

 

Lexa put up her hand in front of Clarke to stop her from speaking, “We’re being watched,” she whispered just loud enough for Clarke to hear. “Come with me, quickly maybe we can lose them in the woods.”

 

Clarke tried her best to stay close to Lexa as they bounced from rock to rock and then into the woods but with her injury she eventually could not see where Lexa was until she almost crashed into her. “Oh, do you think we lost them?” Clarke whispered to Lexa standing behind her.

 

Lexa peered around looking into the woods around them wishing she did not have the injury she had otherwise she’d climb up into the trees for a better view.

 

“Well, well well, it is you…” A voice boomed from behind a rather large tree to the right of the two women. A rather large man appeared from behind this tree with a large smile on his face. “When I heard from my scouts that they had spotted the commander of the tree people wandering around in my territory, I had to come and see it for myself.”

 

Lexa finally made eye contact with him and a smile Clarke had never seen before appeared on her face and she walked right up to her and hugged him. “It is good to see you Morad,” Lexa exclaimed as she pulled away from the big man while Clarke looked at the situation confused.

 

“Lexa, you know you can me Mo, we’ve been over this,” His big smile took over his face.

 

Clarke noticed he had short scruffy hair and no beard or tattoo on his face that she could see. There was some smudged black chalk on his face however like the stuff Lexa used when she went into battle. His grounder clothing was different from the tree people; it looked like it was made from the land. As in made of twigs, moss, and bark, it looked like if he laid on the ground, he might just blend in.

 

Finally after brief conversation in Trigedasleng, he looked over to Clarke, “You might this be Lexa?”

 

Lexa moved away from Morad and moved closer to Clarke, “This is Clarke. She helped me win the war against the mountain men.”

 

He pursed his lips, “Wow… Is she?”    

 

Lexa understood what he was implying and added, “Yes, Clarke is my… Companion… Yes, she is my companion.” She answered a little nervously knowing that she would need to explain what that meant to Clarke so that she knew. For now while in front of Morad she needed to do this without clearing it with Clarke first.

 

He nodded his head, “Yes, I thought that might be the case but I wanted to make sure. Now what are you two doing so far away from your village?” He asked wanting to know why the commander of the tree people would be so far without any guards with her.

 

“We got caught in that river and ended up here. Which is why we are both injured,” Lexa explained knowing he would know what river she’s referring too.

 

He shook his head, “You know you are not to go in that river.”

 

“The earth shook, we fell in the river. Believe me, it was not by choice,” She pointed out to him.

 

“Ah… That makes more sense. I did not think you of all people would be in that river on purpose.” He admitted knowing how many warriors Lexa had lost because of that river. “Well then, would you like to come back to my village until you are rested enough to go back to your own village?” He asked noticing the scrapes, bruises and serious injuries on both of them.

 

Lexa nodded, “Yes that would be very kind of you.”

 

Lexa and Clarke followed Morad a little ways until they came upon a couple of horses.

 

“You can take Luka’s horse. He was going to do some hunting anyways. I am sure that you two can ride together?” He asked looking between Clarke and Lexa.

 

Lexa nodded, “Yes, of course. Clarke, how about you sit in front as I am hindered with my arm?” Lexa turned to Clarke who had been silent for quite a while now.

 

“Uh, yeah I can do that,” Clarke responded as she hoisted herself up on the horse and then helped Lexa up on the horse. She thought it would be much more difficult for Lexa to get up with her arm but with the help of Luka, it wasn’t too difficult. Clarke wanted to ask Lexa what it meant to be someone’s companion but she also didn’t want Morad to overhear and then Lexa’s plans go completely out the window. So for now, she decided to keep quiet until she and Lexa were alone and she could get some answers.

 

Lexa tried to find a position so that she could hold on so that she didn’t fall off but still be able to give Clarke space and not overwhelm her.

 

“Lexa, you’re going to need to hold on to me if you don’t want to fall off,” Clarke pointed out to the commander as she could feel her fidgeting behind her.

 

“I do not want to make you feel uncomfortable,” Lexa whispered.

 

Clarke could feel Lexa’s warm breath graze her neck causing her to shiver a little, “I’ll be fine. I’d rather you not fall off this horse and get injured even more.” She whispered back to Lexa not being able to look her in the eyes.

 

With some reluctance, Lexa eventually placed her left hand and right hand on Clarke’s hips to steady herself and hopefully be enough support so that she didn’t fall off.

 

“With your injury, you may need to sit a little closer and wrap your arms around me completely Lexa. I don’t mind,” Clarke indicated to Lexa.

 

“Are you two ready yet or what?” Morad was getting a little frustrated with the amount of time it was taking for two people to get settled on a horse. “Lexa’s she’s your companion, she’s not going to kill you. Wrap your arms around her so that you don’t fall off.”

 

Lexa did as she was told not wanting to give her plan away.

 

Clarke all of a sudden could feel her body temperature going up from the feeling of Lexa’s warm body flush with her back. It didn’t matter that they were both still wet from the lake. Clarke couldn’t even feel the wetness of the clothes anymore. All she could feel was the heat from the body behind her combined with the strong arms wrapped around her. She was getting lost in the feeling when Lexa shook her out of it as the last of the horses had galloped away from them. Clarke got her bearings and followed the other horses to the village of these people where Clarke was going to get some answers from Lexa.


	11. Day 4 (Part 2)

**_DAY 4 CONTINUED…._ **

****

It was about mid-afternoon as they neared the gate of the Marsh People’s village when Lexa’s grip on Clarke was beginning to loosen and she could feel it. She could feel the strong hold of Lexa’s grip on her weakening. Looking to the right so not to give away to the other grounders that she was concerned for Lexa, Clarke whispered, “What are you doing?”

 

“I need you to stop the horse,” Lexa whispered back making it clear by almost completely letting go of Clarke. If she weren’t injured and wanted off the horse she would have completely let go of Clarke as she would have been confident in her ability to hold herself up on a horse without holding on. However, this was not the case. She couldn’t trust that with her injury that she could hold herself up sufficiently without tumbling off.

 

Without stopping Clarke asked, “Why do you need off the horse? We’re almost there.”

 

Lexa leaned forward as best as she could without hurting her arm further to speak to Clarke more clearly because obviously she was not heard originally, “Stop the horse.”

 

With that Clarke did as instructed and stopped the horse. She wasn’t sure why Lexa wanted off but she knew that the commander had to have a good reason. Clarke helped support some of Lexa’s weight so that she could swing her right leg off of the horse and onto the ground.

 

By this point, Morad and the other grounders had noticed the loss of the two companions and turned back. “Lexa, what are you doing?”

 

Clarke finally noticed the look of relief on Lexa’s face and it hit her, “Oh my god, it’s your arm isn’t? All of the movement on the horse had to of moved it a bit.”

 

Tight-lipped, without giving away too much, Lexa nodded briefly so that only Clarke could see. She did not particularly want to look weak in front of the other grounders. Even if they all understood that everyone gets injured from time to time, she did not want to look weak even once. It wasn’t in her character to look weak. She wanted to keep it that way. She had an image to protect.

 

“I’m walking with you,” Clarke tried to get off the horse before Lexa stopped her by placing her left hand on Clarke’s left leg.

 

“Your ankle Clarke,” Lexa reminded her. “You are not walking with me. I will not allow it.”

 

Clarke shook her head, “Well you’re not walking alone. I’ll walk with you on the horse. It’ll be slow but I’m not leaving you.” She didn’t realize the possible implication of what she just said but in that moment but she didn’t care. She knew that Lexa had to be in pain.

 

Lexa shook her head in annoyance, being babied was not something she wanted other leaders or grounders to see but it was clear that Clarke wasn’t going to stop so she dealt with it. “Alright,” she responded with leaving it at that.

 

Morad watched the situation in front of him, “Well, if you two are walking together. Lexa, I expect you to see our healer as soon as you two arrive.” He looked at her with concern. Almost as though he had a past connection with her and needed to know that she was alright.

 

Lexa walked to the other side of the horse so she could walk on the edge of the path, leaving enough room for the horse to walk, “I need to speak to Clarke first. Then I will see the healer.”

 

“Well, she will be excited to see you. Do not let her wait long,” He didn’t ask, he stated because he needed her to see the healer.

 

This caught Lexa’s attention, “Who is the healer?”

 

“You do remember Sierra?” He asked knowing that Lexa would remember that name.

 

Lexa’s face lit up, in a way Clarke had never seen. It was like seeing a whole other side of the commander. Almost as though, this might be the person she was before becoming the commander. “She’s still alive?” Lexa asked with a bit of laughter to her voice.

 

“I will tell her you said that,” Morad answered sounding almost playful. It seemed like this was something that was said between the three all the time because neither them nor the other grounders were fazed by the question. Actually the other grounders were actually holding back smiles of their own.

 

“I would hope nothing less,” Lexa admitted knowing that her long lost friend would understand the meaning behind it.

 

“Alright then, do you remember the tent you stayed in whenever you came to visit?” He asked as his whole demeanor changed back to being the leader and not this playful older brother figure.

 

Lexa nodded, “Yes, of course.”

 

“You two will be staying there. We’ve made some modifications over the last few years, but it’s in the same place.” He explained looking down at her from his horse. “Well, we’ll leave the two of you here.” He looked to his warriors, “Let’s go.” With that they were off into the village.

 

Clarke looked down at Lexa, “So how do you feel now?”

 

Lexa looked around to make sure no one was there, “I am fine Clarke. Once the healer looks at my arm, I am sure everything will be fine.”

 

Clarke wanted to ask Lexa about the companion thing now that they were alone but she didn’t want to overstep. Not to mention, she knew that there was a good chance that Morad had people in the woods all of the time so there was a chance that someone could overhear their conversation. Then all of Lexa’s efforts to do this would have been for nothing. So instead, she decided to just wait. Wait until Lexa felt that it was time to tell her.

 

They walked into the village, this one in particular didn’t live up to their clan name but it still had elements of the marsh on the houses. Some of the homes actually blended quite a bit with the surroundings of the forest. This was one of the clans that Lexa had a close relationship with so she’d been there many times and each time it seemed that the village was a little bit different. Maybe it was the number of people living in the village or it was the added camouflage.

 

It had been so long since she’d been in this village that she had lost track of just how long it had been. It quite possibly may have been closer to two years. In a way she was excited to be back because she was going to see all of the people she had grown up with including Sierra. Out of all of the clans that they could have been at right now, she was glad it was this one.

 

The tent that she and Clarke would be staying in was at the far corner of the village so she had to walk through the village. The paths weren’t too busy as it was right around the time of day that most people were out hunting but there were a few here and there that would recognize her and wave.

 

Clarke had never seen this kind of affection between grounders before. They were actually showing emotions that were more than just anger. Most of it was directed at Lexa but here and there, there was someone who would recognize Clarke. Well she thought they did because their eyesight was directed at her and not Lexa. She didn’t know what the tradition was so she just smiled. Lexa wasn’t waving back so she felt that she should do as Lexa did. Then again, Lexa had her only free hand on the horse reins so maybe she would have been waving had her right arm not been injured.

 

Once they arrived at the tent, Clarke got off of the horse so that Lexa could tie the reins on a nearby tree until one of the other people came to collect the horse. Clarke couldn’t tell if it was a tent or if it was some kind of a cave because of the colors, the brown and green, it looked like it was part of the environment with a cloth door.

 

“Are you sure we’re in the right place?” Clarke asked turning back to Lexa with confusion in her features.

 

Lexa smiled briefly, “Yes Clarke, I am sure.” She motioned for Clarke to enter first. Following her in, Lexa felt a sense of nostalgia walking into the tent she hadn’t used since the last time she had been there. “Wow… It is just as I left it the last time I was here.” She moved to the table and chair before sitting down in the chair and looking at the things on the table.

 

Clarke looked around and noticed the various candles and torches, but she also noticed the big bed near the back of the tent, big furs of different colors covering it. With her crappy ankle she was drawn to it as it looked like the most comfortable piece of furniture in the whole place. She walked past Lexa staring at the maps, and sculptures, and sat on the big comfy bed. She pulled herself back on the bed so that her feet were dangling off the bed before laying back to feel the comfort of it. It felt as comfy as it had looked. Clarke had never really felt comfort like this the entire time she was on the ground. It was always beds on grass, or moss, or logs, it was never comfy but this… This was heaven. It felt like she was lying on a pack of clouds, soft and cozy clouds. Her eyes were beginning to drift off because of the comfort level before she was brought out of her daze by Lexa.

 

“I cannot believe this is still all here,” Lexa was in awe at the level of which all of her things had been left. Since it had been so long, she figured that they would have given this tent to someone else.

 

Clarke shook herself before sitting up on the bed and supporting her weight with her hands behind her, “So this is your tent then?” She asked wondering if she should get off of the bed but not wanting to because the last night before she had slept on rocks, she wanted to take this in right now.

 

Lexa finally turned her attention to Clarke and noticed where she was sitting. _Clarke is sitting on my bed, her warmth and scent is covering the vast majority of the furs…._ She thought before shaking herself and answered the question, “Yes… Yes, this was… or I guess is my tent. Whenever I am able to visit, this is where I have stayed.”

 

“From the look on your face, I’m going to say that it’s been a while since you were last here. Am I right?” Clarke asked noticing the look on Lexa’s face.

 

Lexa nodded, “Yes. It has been many months since I have been here. I honestly do not remember the last time I was here. I have not seen these people in a very long time.” She was stuck in memory lane. There were so many memories here in this tent, some good, some bad but all here and that’s what got her the most. The fact that they felt that her tent should stay here and not be used by anyone was an honour that she didn’t know she had here. She knew it had nothing to do with her status, it wasn’t because she was the commander of the tree people, it was because of the family dynamic she had with this clan.  

 

Clarke nodded in agreement, “I could see that you are loved as we came into this village. It seemed like a lot of people care for you here. It didn’t look like they were doing it because you are the commander, it seemed like more.”

 

“It is definitely more. I spent a lot of my childhood here when my father would visit this clan. He always had reasons to come here but I think it was more so for me. He knew how much I liked it here. How at home I felt,” Lexa explained not even realizing how much she was opening up to. She was too stuck in the memories to realize what she was doing. However, she had always felt a comfort with Clarke that she never had with anyone else.

 

“So you’ve stayed in this tent since you were little?” Clarke asked not sure about the idea that multiple people may have slept in this bed.

 

Lexa could see the look of concern on Clarke’s face, “You needn’t worry Clarke, I have only been the one to use this tent. My father had another tent he used when I was growing up. This one has only been mine.”

 

Clarke felt a sense of relief and relaxed a bit more on the bed. “That’s good to know.” She was going to lean back on the bed again when the real reason for wanting to be alone came back to her. “I realize that you are going down memory lane and I don’t want to stop that for you but now that we’re alone…” Clarke leaned forward and placed her hands in her lap, “Why did you tell Morad that I’m your companion? Is it another challenge type thing?” Concern took over her features again at the thought of having to fight someone else.

 

“This is not a challenge, you will not need to fight anyone,” Lexa indicated to Clarke and watched as the concern left her features.  

 

Clarke sighed, “Good because I think one challenge is enough. If it’s not challenge oriented, then what is it?”

 

Lexa swallowed nervously a little afraid of Clarke’s reaction to what a companion was in her culture. “A companion is what we call someone before being united as one.” Lexa explained and could tell from the look on Clarke’s face that she did not understand.

 

Clarke looked at Lexa very confused, “What does that mean? United as one? I thought you said there was no fighting involved because that sounds like a ‘I kill you and become you’ type situation,” Clarke used quotation to emphasis her point.

 

Lexa shook her head, “No, it is nothing like that. United as one, as in spending one’s life with someone for the rest of their life,” she watched as it looked like a lightbulb went off in Clarke’s mind.

 

Realization took over Clarke as it hit her as to what Lexa was implying, “Wait… Do you mean like married?” She doesn’t let Lexa answer before continuing on her train of thought, “So that would mean that a companion would be your word for engaged then?”

 

It was Lexa’s turn to be confused now as she did not recognize the words Clarke used, “I do not understand what you mean, could you explain?”

 

“Being married would be our word for spending the rest of your life with someone, that’s what you mean isn’t it?” Clarke asked not sure if she wanted to know the answer because she wasn’t sure why Lexa would even put them in this situation.

 

Lexa nodded, “Then yes, you are right. What you call engaged, I would call being a companion and being united would be married, yes,” Lexa confirmed making sure that they were both on the same page now.

 

“Why would you do that? We aren’t engaged? We aren’t even dating? I told you, I’m not ready for a relationship yet,” Clarke knew that was a lie the moment she said it but she didn’t want Lexa to know that. Not yet.

 

“I know, I am sorry Clarke but I had no other option in that moment. I wish that I could have spoken to you first. At least given you a heads up but I did not have the time for that.” Lexa tried to apologize for what she had done. Even though she knew it was the right way to go about the whole situation. She didn’t want to think about what would have happened had she not done it.

 

“Then why do it at all?” Clarke wanted to know. She wanted to know why Lexa would put them in such an awkward situation. This would mean that they would need to pretend to be something they are not and Clarke wasn’t sure if she would be able to separate the two once they got home.

 

Lexa wanted to look away from Clarke, she wanted to explain her reasons without looking into those ocean blue eyes but she couldn’t look away. She shook herself out of her thoughts and tried to explain without saying too much, “Okay, every clan has their own traditions and their own laws. We have laws as a coalition yes, but each people still have their own ways of doing things.”

 

Clarke nodded in agreement, “That makes sense, okay.”

 

“For my people, being united is about love. Asking someone to be your companion is a big deal, and being united is even bigger. However, not all clans are the same on this front.” Lexa explained trying to gauge Clarke’s reaction. When it looked like Clarke understood, she continued, “For the Marsh people, it is not about love. It is about finding and claiming the strongest warrior, man or woman.”

 

“Okay, but why tell them I’m your companion… They don’t know anything about me. To them, I’m probably just this random girl hanging around with the commander of the Tree people,” Clarke pointed out not seeing the significance of her being Lexa’s companion.  

 

Lexa shook her head, “You are not as random as you might think. With the defeat of Mount Weather, legends were made and stories will be told for generations. You and I defeating Mount Weather will spread and probably has spread. They will know of your strength, if they do not know already. With that strength comes the need to claim that strength as one’s own.” Finally Lexa freed herself of Clarke’s gaze and looked toward a random log holding up the ceiling. “I did what I did to make sure you still had freedom of choice. I did not want you to be in a situation you would not know how to handle.”    

 

“Wait…” Clarke watched as Lexa’s gaze came back to her own. “So you did this so that I could still choose who I wanted to be with?”

 

Lexa nodded, “Yes, I did not want to risk you losing the chance to fall in love because from what I have seen, you are about falling in love.” Getting lost in the moment and the look in Clarke’s eyes, Lexa confessed something she didn’t want to when this conversation began, “You know that I care about you, that much is certain, so I want you to know that this is not me trying to force you to make a decision. I will…” She focused in on the corner of the bed as she thought of her next words before looking back at Clarke, “I will wait as long as it takes for you to be ready.”

 

Clarke knew how Lexa felt and not just because of what hallucinating Lexa had said but also the way Lexa protected her and made sure she was always comfortable in whatever situation they were in. Those were the moments, all of those moments; they were how Clarke knew Lexa cared for her so hearing it wasn’t a shock for her. In this moment, she almost wanted to tell Lexa the truth that she was ready to be something with her but something in the back of her mind stopped her. “I know that you would never push me to make a decision Lexa. I understand that you didn’t do this for that reason. I’m sure this is as hard for you as it will be for me. What does it entail to be someone’s companion anyways?” Clarke asked curious to know what happens to be a companion.

 

Lexa was thankful for the distraction and explained by saying, “Asking someone to be your companion as I said is very important. For my people, it is one of the greatest honours someone could ask of you. It really depends on the person as each person will do their own thing but for me I would probably take them to a significant location in the relationship. It would probably be the location when I knew, when I knew that person was the one. Once you have the location, there is usually some kind of a feast and candles, but most of all, everything is about the other person. Asking them is the most important and we do so by asking one question….” Lexa trailed off thinking about something from her past before shaking it from her thoughts and moving on. “We ask the person: will you be united with me for all of eternity?”

 

Clarke could feel the emotion coming from Lexa, she could tell that there might be more to this story than meets the eye but she didn’t have the guts to ask Lexa about it right now. She would however, hold onto it for now and then bring it up at a later date. “Wow… It really is a big deal for your people.”

 

“Yes, it is. We take it very serious,” Lexa admitted looking straight into Clarke’s eyes. She wanted her to know how important it was and just how hard it was for her to tell Morad they were companions.

 

“Okay, is there a ring involved?” Clarke asked needing to lighten the subject because she could tell that talking about this was very hard for Lexa. She had an inkling of why it was hard for Lexa but wasn’t completely sure.

 

Lexa looked at Clarke confused, “A ring?”

 

“Up on the ark, if someone were to ask someone to marry them, they offer a ring for the other to wear until they get married. Do you guys do something like that?” Clarke asked kind of needing to know just in case there are things she should be wearing around the village.

 

Finally understanding what Clarke meant, Lexa shook her head, “No, we do not do rings. That would not work in battle. In place of that, the one asking…”

 

“Proposing….” Clarke interjected.

 

“What is proposing?” Lexa asked.

 

“That is what we call asking someone to marry you… you are proposing to someone.” Clarke dropped her head in defeat before looking back up at Lexa. “Lexa, if we’re to say that we’re companions, then we need to use both my language and yours because there is no way that I would use your terminology to describe what happened between us when I have my own. So if this is going to work, we need to both be set on what both of our cultures call it.”

 

For a moment, Lexa let the idea sink in before she nodded her head, “That does make sense. The one… proposing… would give the other something that is very important to them.”

 

Clarke looked herself up and down and realized she definitely doesn’t have anything important to herself with her, “Well if we go with the idea that you proposed to me, then I would need something from you.”

 

“And why would I be the one, why not you?” Lexa asked wanting to know Clarke’s reasoning’s.

 

“Look at me; do I look like I have anything personal with me? My blue jacket is back in the forest by Camp Jaha and I left my dad’s watch at the ark because I didn’t want it to break while we were training. Not to mention, you used the term companions. If I were the one telling someone, I would have said engaged so I think it’s safe to say that in this pretend world, you are the one that did it.” Clarke pointed out all of her reasons. She knew she was right and she could tell that Lexa could see that she was right.

 

“Fair enough, then you will need something of mine. I do not always have something personal with me at all times but…” A thought occurred to her as she got up from her chair and started rummaging through some loose papers and cloths on a table across the room.

 

“But what, Lexa?” Clarke asked wanting to know what was going on in the commander’s head. She was acting a little strange in this moment.

 

After several minutes and several attempts to get Lexa’s attention, Lexa finally emerged from all of the junk, “Found it.” She exclaimed with her back facing Clarke. Turning around it looked as though that Lexa was holding some kind of a necklace with something attached to it. “I had forgotten until now that I had left this here by mistake one of the times that I was here.” She sat back down on the chair that she was sitting on and moved it closer to Clarke so that her knees were only a few centimetres from the bed.

 

Clarke noticed the change in distance from Lexa, the closeness made it that much more special but in this moment, Clarke wasn’t sure she could do pretend. “What-What is it?” She needed to focus on something else because the closeness to Lexa was a bit much for her.

 

Lexa looked upon the simple brown twine that had been used to make the necklace and the small wooden carving of a little oak tree that hung from it; she was getting lost in the memory of it again before she realized that she was being watched. “This was handed down to me when I was just a young girl. My father had given it to me before he died.” Her voice fading out at the memory of her father giving her this necklace, “He had said that no matter where I was, I would always have a piece of him. This is something that is very important to me. It would make sense for you to wear it while we are here.” Lexa handed the necklace to Clarke.

 

Clarke picked it up from Lexa’s hands before taking the necklace and placing it over her head. The hole just barely fit over Clarke’s head so she had a feeling it wouldn’t fall off easy. Looking back to Lexa, Clarke asked, “How does it look?”

 

Lexa nodded, “It looks good.”

 

Clarke could see that Lexa needed another distraction, “So what’s our story then?”

 

“Story?” Lexa asked confused by the question.

 

“Well, we need a story for how you did it. If someone were to ask me and I told one thing and then you got asked and told another, we’d surely be found out. We need a complete story so that that doesn’t happen. So how did you do it?” Clarke explained to Lexa. “How did you ask me to be united with you?”

 

Lexa thought for a moment on what their story could be before she came up with something perfect. “Even though I think having a story is rather pointless because very few of my people bother with the how, I know that fighting you on this would be a losing battle so I will create a story for you. Let’s say that I brought you to that area in the forest not too far from the pauna’s feeding ground. I realized it was dangerous but that was the moment I realized I was falling for you…” Lexa just realized what she’d said so she quickly moved on in hope that Clarke would miss it. “I had a tent constructed and some warriors placed in the surrounding area just in case. We could say that I invited you there under the idea that I would be teaching you more techniques of hiding in trees until you got there and saw everything. We had a feast, and I asked you to unite with me offering you that necklace to you.”

 

Clarke got lost in the storyline and the emotion behind in that she whispered a, “Yes.” Before coming to grip with the situation and nodding, “Yes, I think that will work. Okay, now we have the story and the necklace, I think we’re good on all fronts, yes?” She needed to get out of this tent. It was getting way too hot for her. The idea of being more with Lexa was getting to be too much for her. She wanted to hold on until she lived out the challenge before confessing her feelings for the brunette just in case she lost the challenge. However, in this moment, she wanted to kiss Lexa so bad. The emotion she put into all of her stories was too much to handle.

 

Lexa nodded, “Yes, I believe we are. Is there anything else you can think of Clarke?”

 

Clarke shook her head, “No, I don’t think so.”

 

Lexa was conflicted and felt so stuck in her spot. She knew she needed to move. She needed to go find Sierra and get her arm checked out to make sure it would heal properly. However, from everything she’d just explained, to Clarke wearing her necklace, she wanted to do anything but leave this tent. Leaving the tent meant this whole thing would end, it meant that their moment would end. As much as she didn’t want to, she knew she needed to move on though, she needed to create space. So she pushed her chair back, “Okay, well we only need to pretend that we are together while outside this tent. In here, we can just continue being…”

 

Clarke swallowed nervously lost in the moment as well, “Yeah…. Right…”

 

“Yeah…” Lexa stood up abruptly, “We need to go to the healer. I think that would be a good idea, do you agree?”

 

Clarke shook herself from the moment, “Yes, I agree. You definitely need to get your arm and shoulder checked and I should get her to look at my ankle.”    

 

“Yes, okay. Let’s go,” Lexa turned to leave before walking back to Clarke and putting out her hand to help her up, “Let me help you.”

 

Clarke didn’t hesitate; she placed her right hand into Lexa’s left hand, “Thank you,” as she was pulled up to her feet.

 

“Do you think you can walk there yourself? Or do you want me to help be your crutch until we get there?” Lexa asked not sure if she could handle being that close to Clarke but didn’t want to seem rude that she wouldn’t help.

 

“I think I should be okay but thanks,” Clarke responded as she half walked half limped past Lexa toward the exit of the tent. She too wasn’t sure she could be that close to Lexa without doing something she wasn’t completely ready for so she felt that a little pain would be okay.

 

Lexa watched as Clarke walked past her before following her out of the tent. They then made their toward the healer’s tent.

 

XXXXXXXXXXXXX

 

Lexa walked into the healer’s tent after Clarke did and could see a taller woman with short black hair facing away from them.

 

Before Lexa could say anything, the woman responded by saying, “You thought I was dead?” She asked as she turned around and came face to face with her friend.

 

“I guess you threw pleasantries right out the window, you do know that I am a commander now right?” Lexa directed at the woman, sarcasm dripping from her voice.

 

“Hm… Let me think,” The woman tapped her right index finger on her lips before responding with, “Duh, I was here when you united the clans. Whether you are a commander or not, does not change our friendship and you know it.” The woman challenged Lexa with her eyes. “Now, who do we have here? Is this the companion that Mo was telling me about?” The woman walked over to Clarke and looked her over by walking around her. Once she got behind her, she mouthed ‘she’s gorgeous’ to Lexa who just shook her head in response.

 

“Yes, this is Clarke. Clarke this is one of my friends Sierra,” Lexa motioned to the woman that finally came back into view.

 

“She lies; I am not just her friend. I am her friend for life,” Sierra explained before she pulled Clarke in for a hug.

 

Lexa shook her head chuckling under her breath, “Unfortunately, I have to agree with that statement but that is it. I am not agreeing on anything else.”

 

Sierra pumped her fist, “Yes, one for me, zero for you. Who will win this time?”

 

“Sierra, I am not alone this time. We cannot play our usual games,” Lexa tried to convince her friend but she was not having it.

 

“Nonsense, we can include her. Right? Clarke was it? You’d want to join in on our game?” Sierra asked with hope in her eyes.

 

Clarke couldn’t quite peg the color of her eyes but they were like an amber type color and she could not look away, “Uh… I guess.” She shrugged her shoulders as she looked back at Lexa.

 

“It’s settled. You can join our game. Lexa will tell you the rules later but first, I am the healer and clearly you two need some healing. What can I do for you?” Sierra asked looking at the clear injuries both girls have.

 

Lexa looked at Clarke, “She has injured her ankle. Clarke, why don’t you sit up on the table for Sierra to take a look?”

 

Clarke looked back at Lexa, “Lexa, you’re injuries are far worse than mine, you go first.”

 

Lexa shook her head, “I will not do that Clarke. Not until I know that you are fine.”

 

Sierra looked between the two, “Can we make a decision ladies?”

 

“Fine, I’ll go first.” Clarke announced feeling defeated.

 

“Lexa you have a point, I have a point, Clarke you have zero,” Sierra pointed out as Clarke got up on the table.

 

“Sierra, why does the game have to start now?” Lexa asked knowing that Clarke would be confused. “She does not even know what it means yet.”

 

“Fine, I’ll explain. Okay, basically whenever there is any kind of competition between two people, usually myself or Lexa, whoever wins, gets a point. You just lost that argument, so Lexa got the point. Make sense?” Sierra asked looking Clarke right into the eyes.

 

Clarke looked a little unsure because Sierra was staring at her pretty intensely, “Uh, I guess.”

 

“Good, it’s settled. Now let me look at this ankle. While I do that, can ask how you did it Lexa?” Sierra asked wanting to know.

 

“Did-Did what?” Lexa asked as she decided to hop up onto the other table in the healer’s tent.

 

“What kind of question is that? How did you ask Clarke to unite with you for eternity? I have to know how my friend for life did the deed that I thought I’d beat you to.” Sierra stated.

 

Clarke looked over to Lexa with smugness in her smile because she knew that Lexa didn’t want to create a story earlier and yet in this moment… Had Clarke not convinced her earlier, Lexa would be a little stuck right now.

 

Lexa smiled back, “Well, let me see it went a little like this….”  


	12. Day 4 (Part 3)

**_DAY 4 CONTINUED…_ **

****

“Well, I don’t think your arm is completely broken Lexa,” Sierra indicated as she finished looking over the commander’s arm.

 

Clarke looked up from the crutches she was building out of some branches, “What does that mean?” She asked as she looked back and forth from her make-shift crutches and Sierra.

 

Sierra looked to Lexa with a sly smile hiding it from Clarke before looking to Clarke to answer, “Well, Lexa has movement in her fingers and she can still move her wrist a bit so I would say that her forearm is not completely broken. If it was, she wouldn’t have movement like this.”

 

Clarke looked over to Lexa confused, “Then maybe it was just your shoulder that prevented you from trying to climb up the cliff?”

 

Lexa wasn’t sure why one injury would have prevented her from being able to push past it and climb up the cliff but she didn’t have any other proof that would say otherwise for why she couldn’t. So she decided to just agree with Clarke as she stared at the corner of the tent confused, “I guess that must be the reason.”

 

“Alright, so I’m just going to build you a better splint for you to keep your arm as straight as possible until it’s completely healed, okay?” Sierra asked Lexa.

 

Lexa was still lost in thought, “Sure.” She responded nodding her head. Her mind was going over each and every detail that she could remember from the ground shaking. As her mind leapt to the idea of her landing on the ground, she felt a sharp pain shoot through her arm into her shoulder almost as though it just occurred. However, she was able to keep herself under control and didn’t show the emotion. Her mind was racing as she remembered rolling down toward the edge, the feeling of the rocks sliding against her armour, the wind blowing through the trees, the smell of the river down below, it was like she was there again.

 

Several minutes pasted before Sierra pulled Lexa out of her trance, “That should do it.” She indicated looking down at her work below. “Oh, I almost forgot. Take this,” Sierra handed a bottle to Lexa. “If you feel any pain, take a sip of this. It should dull some of the pain. That goes for you too Clarke but I do not think you will need any. Your ankle should be fine after a day of rest.”  

 

Lexa gave a weak smile still focused on what had happened on the cliff. The idea of it just didn’t make any sense of it. She was determined to try and figure out why she was not able to get herself up on the cliff. With that she walked out of the tent with Clarke following behind.

 

“Are you okay?” Clarke asked walking next to Lexa with her make-shift crutches.

 

Lexa didn’t look over to Clarke, “I am fine Clarke.”

 

“Are you sure? You don’t look fine.” Clarke stated noticing the lost look on Lexa’s face. Lowering her voice so that only Lexa could hear she whispered, “This isn’t about our situation is it?” Not getting a response, Clarke pushed on, “We will get past this. No one will suspect a thing. I promise.”

 

Lexa stopped for a second and watched as Clarke continued on talking about something, she’s wasn’t sure what. Her mind was elsewhere and she couldn’t stop to think about the now. Closing her eyes she could feel the temperatures getting cooler as the sun went down, and as she opened her eyes slowly, she could see the light slowly disappearing behind the trees.

 

“Lexa, are you coming?” Clarke called out back to Lexa. “We need to get out in the forest, if we hope to have some food tonight.”

 

Lexa couldn’t help the small smile that appeared on her lips as she thought of the idea of Clarke trying to hunt in her condition. As she caught up to Clarke she explained, “Clarke, you forget that I am the commander. There will be a feast in my honor tonight. We do not need to worry about hunting.”

 

“Phew… That’s good. I don’t think it would have been pretty in this state.” Clarke exhaled feeling relief knowing that she wouldn’t need to hunt.

 

“Yes well, I would not have let you go out in your state anyway,” Lexa pointed out as she started walking away.

 

“What? I could have done it. It just would have been harder,” Clarke tried to defend herself as she tried to catch up to Lexa walking in a direction they hadn’t been to.    

 

“I am sure you would have,” Lexa contained the smile she wanted to show for Clarke’s determination to do something she probably shouldn’t do in her condition.

 

In the distance, someone watched Clarke and Lexa’s exchange and couldn’t help but notice the lack of affection between the two leaders. “Something isn’t right there. There is no way those two are companions,” The person mused to themselves before turning around and going back in their tent.

 

XXXXXXXXX

 

“Are you absolutely sure this is a good idea?” Monty asked standing next to Raven as he watched Wick, Kane and a bunch of grounders move the mysterious object into the gate of their camp.

 

“If I wasn’t sure, do you really think that I’d be allowing this?” Raven stated. “From what I can tell, it doesn’t show any signs of being explosive and it’s not leaking any harmful radiation. We should be fine. I still stand by not putting it in the ark because you never know what could happen but I do think that it should be safe enough to bring into the gates. Then at least it will be protected at all times. There will be no worry that it will be taken in the night.” Raven explained as she also watched the object get brought into the gates.

 

Monty nodded in agreement, “But if you don’t think it’ll explode why not just take it into the ark. We’ll still have to work on it in this ever dropping cold weather.”

 

Raven turned away and looked right at Monty, “I still stand by what I said earlier. We do not know what it does. Until we know what it does, we should be smart about this. We can easily build a tent around it to keep some of the cold wind out but until we are 100% sure we know what its purpose is, we are not bringing it into the ark.” She further explained her reasoning’s. “I know it’ll suck but I’d rather work on it outside the ark rather than bringing it in and something happened.”

 

“What could happen?” Monty asked.

 

Raven shrugged her shoulders, “I don’t know and that’s what I don’t like. I can’t answer that question. I need to be able to answer that question. What if we bring it into the ark and it explodes?”

 

“But you said-“

 

“I know what I said but I don’t know what this thing is. Let alone where it came from. Did it come from space? If it did, why didn’t we see it while the ark was in space? Or is there a chance that there is life on other parts of Earth? We don’t know.” Raven explained using her fingers to count out each thing that it could be. “Until I have answers, I’m not risking other people’s lives by bringing it into the ark. It might just need contact with other metal objects to come to life, we don’t know. Until we do, it’s not taking a single step into the ark, understood?” Raven peered into his soul with that question. “Monty, I need you on my side. If Wick tries to convince you otherwise, you need to resist.”

 

Monty nodded, “I understand.” That was all he could say feeling a little scared for his life in this moment. She was staring at his with such intensity he didn’t know if he could take it any longer.

 

“Good.” She left him standing in one place as she followed the object into the gates to make sure it gets placed where she wants it placed. “Okay, I’d like it over there…”

 

Meanwhile over by the new grounder houses, Octavia was watching the exchange and couldn’t help but smile at how forceful Raven was. It was no surprise that she was able to get down to Earth in the first place. Octavia was deep in thought whenever someone walked up next to her.

 

“Hey Octavia.”

 

Octavia’s attention was pulled over to the voice next to her, “Oh hey Jasper. Not working on houses again?” She looked at him curiously.

 

“I don’t see you working on any houses,” Jasper shot back.

 

Octavia smirked, “Good point. Can I do something for you?” She asked getting right to the point because she didn’t feel like dancing around something Jasper clearly wanted to ask her.

 

“Wow, you just get right to the point don’t you?” He got a look that said yes so he continued. “Right, so… Something has been on my mind as well as some of the others that were in Mount Weather and we can’t seem to get an answer from anyone. I was hoping you might be able to shed some light on it.”

 

“Which is??” Octavia asked again.

 

“Uh… Well… We’re wondering what happened to Finn.” He watched Octavia look away from him and look right back at Raven supervising the placement of the mysterious object. “Everyone we’ve asked only ever says that he’s gone. What does that mean?”

 

Octavia stood there in thought. She was there; she witnessed the ending of the massacre. It was not something she wanted to be reminded of. Seeing some grounders she had come to know, dead on the ground. All because Finn thought Clarke was at Tondc. He killed so many grounders for nothing. How would she describe that to Jasper? How would he understand?

 

“Octavia, I’ve been getting the feeling from everyone that gone doesn’t mean that he left but I was hoping for someone to confirm it for me. Raven ran off crying when I asked her so I know it’s something bad…” He trailed off as Octavia put up her hand as a signal for him to shut-up.

 

Without facing him, Octavia answered, “You’re right.”

 

He looked at her flabbergasted, “I am.”

 

Octavia nodded as she finally turned her body to face him. “Finn is not gone like he left; he’s gone as in dead.” She explained with a straight face practicing her ability to give bad news without showing emotion. Indra had told her to practice it because she wasn’t very good at it.  

 

Jasper’s mouth dropped open and closed over and over until he found the words to speak, “Wh-What happened? I always thought he was the one who created this alliance.”

 

Octavia weighed her options before she answered, “Well, in a way he is the reason that we have an alliance with the grounders.” She indicated as she remembered the fact that he needed to die for them to be in an alliance with the grounders. The look on his face when he was tied to that post will stay with her for forever.

 

“How? If he’s dead, how could he…” He trailed off when it finally hit him. “Oh my god… You-You’re not… You’re not saying that he…”

 

Octavia could see that he finally figured it out from the tears building up in his eyes, “We have an alliance with the grounders because Finn massacred eighteen grounders and we had to choose between him and our people.”

 

“So… the grounders killed him?” Jasper asked as a tear slid down his cheek.

 

Octavia shook her head, “No.”

 

“What do you mean no? It’s obvious that you chose the ark over Finn so the grounders should have killed him.” Jasper was trying to hold back his emotion but was having difficulties because someone should have told them sooner what happened. Instead they had to find someone and ask themselves.

 

Octavia didn’t know how to answer that question. She knew who killed Finn, she was there but she didn’t know how he would take it. Would knowing the truth change how he felt for Clarke? Would it change how worried they all worried for Clarke’s safety after the cliff? She took a leap of faith and just answered, “Clarke.”

 

“What about Clarke?” Jasper didn’t understand what Octavia was getting at.

 

“She killed Finn,” She watched Jasper take it in. He tried to answer but she continued on, “Clarke made a choice. A choice that none of us understood at first. She decided to kill him to spare him from being tortured by the grounders. He didn’t suffer this way.” Octavia placed a hand on Jasper’s right arm. “I’m sorry no one told you until now but, it wasn’t a subject any of us wanted to be reminded of.”

 

Jasper nodded in agreement, “Thank you for telling me Octavia.”

 

Octavia nodded before turning around and walking away to look for Lincoln as he would be getting ready to go hunting and she needed something to distract her mind.

 

Jasper was left there with his thoughts about the whole thing. After a few minutes, he decided to go look for Monty to tell him the truth.

 

XXXXXXXXX

 

 

Clarke walked into their tent first, as best should could with her crutches and flopped onto the bed, “Well, I’m stuffed. When people throw a feast for you, it really is good. When this challenge is over, we should visit other clans.” Clarke exclaimed as she pushed herself up onto her elbows to watch Lexa walk into the tent.

 

Lexa smiled at the thought of visiting other clans with Clarke. “First you need to be trained. Then we will discuss what happens after the challenge.” She indicated as she began removing the armor left on her body.

 

Clarke swallowed nervously as she watched Lexa remove her armour. She felt like she was intruding on something so personal so she tried very hard to look anywhere but at Lexa. However, her eyesight couldn’t seem to stay elsewhere very long. It kept going back to the commander standing not too far away.

 

“Clarke, it is not polite to stare,” Lexa pointed out as she watched Clarke blush from the corner of her eye.

 

“Right, you’re right. Staring, not good,” Clarke stuttered out as she stood up from the bed to try and distract herself. It definitely didn’t help that she stood on the wrong ankle and could feel herself begin to fall forward. She didn’t get far before she felt strong arms around her. Slowly standing up tall, she was met eye to eye with Lexa. “Uh, thanks,” she barely whispered not able to look away from those piercing emerald orbs staring back at her. For a split second, she almost let herself succumb to her feelings and could feel herself moving closer and closer until it hit her what was happening and pulled away rather abruptly, “Right, so… uh, right.”

 

“Yes right,” Lexa didn’t know how to respond either. So she turned back around and continued to remove the rest of the armour until she was left in her black tank top and boy shorts. She made her way to the left side of the bed to get under the covers but ended up stopping herself right next to the bed. “Clarke?”

 

Clarke turned around from looking at the scrolls that were on the opposite table, “Yes?” Her eyes finally reached Lexa and she all of a sudden forgot how to breathe. Her eyes looked Lexa up and down from what she could see with the bed hiding half of her legs. She’d never seen the commander so exposed. She could see Lexa’s mouth moving but she didn’t hear anything, “I’m.. I’m sorry, what?”

 

“Is it alright if we sleep in the same bed?” Lexa asked trying to sound as strong as possible because she was feeling incredibly weak in front of the blonde.

 

“Uh, yeah, well we both need to sleep so I think that makes sense,” Clarke tried to keep her cool but was failing miserably as she couldn’t seem to stop moving her hands around.

 

“Well, I could sleep outside if you would prefer the bed to yourself,” Lexa suggested wanting to make sure Clarke was comfortable with the situation.

 

Clarke moved to the left side of the bed to look right at Lexa, “If we did that our façade would not be believable anymore.” Clarke pointed out as she removed her shoes and placed them next to the bed with her socks.

 

“That is a good point,” Lexa agreed still standing by the bed awkwardly.

 

Clarke wasn’t sure if she should remove her pants because all she had underneath was her underwear so she decided to just keep them on so this wouldn’t be too awkward. So she moved to get under the covers on the right side. Looking up she looked at Lexa, “Well, are you just going to stand there all night?” She found some of her confidence and breathed in and out deeply to get some of her nerves to go away.

 

Lexa did as was suggested and got under the covers next to Clarke giving enough space between the two of them so that Clarke didn’t feel uncomfortable.

 

Just as Lexa was going to say something, Clarke chimed in, “Lexa, can I-Can I ask you something?”

 

Lexa was glad for the distraction, “Yes.”

 

Clarke looked up at the ceiling of the tent, “Um, earlier today when you were telling me what it means to be a companion and what it entails to ask someone…”

 

Lexa heard her trail off, “Yes Clarke.”

 

“It sounded like you were talking from experience.” Clarke paused to try and gauge Lexa’s reaction and like normal she couldn’t see any type of emotion producing from Lexa. So she asked what she was thinking earlier in the day. “You were going to ask her weren’t you?” There it was. Clarke could see tears start to build up in Lexa’s eyes. She was right.  

 

Lexa pulled herself up as best as she could with her arm and leaned against the wall that the bed was against. Clarke followed suit but turned to face Lexa as she sat. Lexa looked down at her hands as the feeling came back to her. “Yes. That is one of the reasons that I blame myself for her disappearance. I was so focused on getting ready to ask her that I never noticed the ice nation’s warriors come into MY camp and take her.” The commander explained keeping her emotions under check.

 

Lexa was trying hard to keep her emotions to herself but Clarke could see right through her. She could see how much it hurt her to talk about. “You know what, you don’t need to explain. I shouldn’t have asked,” Clarke looked down at her hands.

 

Lexa did something she very rarely did and reached over and placed a hand on top of Clarke’s arm to get her attention, “You do not need to apologize, Clarke. It is in the past. It happened, it is over.” She tried to get Clarke to smile because she could tell that Clarke felt responsible for bringing up such a painful memory.

 

“Are you sure?” Clarke looked up at Lexa with hopeful eyes.

 

“Yes,” Lexa nodded. “I assure you that I am fine.”

 

Clarke could see in Lexa’s eyes that she wasn’t okay. This was affecting Lexa more than she would tell Clarke so she tried to think of something else to try and distract the commander. “So Sierra.”

 

“What about Sierra?” Lexa asked curious to know where Clarke was taking this.

 

“I noticed that she doesn’t speak like the rest of you, is there a reason for that?” Clarke asked hoping to distract Lexa but being curious as well.

 

Lexa smiled a little, “Yes. She has already been interested in the past world, Earth before the bombs. At a young age, Sierra told me that she came across, I believe she said it was called a Library?” Lexa questioned more herself than Clarke because she was trying to remember what Sierra had told her.

 

“You mean a place with books?” Clarke asked looking at the commander with hopeful eyes.

 

“If that is what a library is than yes that is what she came across.” Lexa agreed realizing that that is what Sierra called it. “She said that inside of it there were more books than she could have read in a lifetime. She spent many a day in their reading those books.”

 

“How did she know how to read them?” Clarke butted into the story to ask.

 

“At a very young age, we are taught both English and Trigedasleng so that we may understand what the mountain men say.” Lexa explained pointing out that there was always a reason for why they knew English. “Sierra took what she learned and moved it to books. She was able to determine what each would meant from another book she had found. Soon after, the other villagers as well as myself noticed she was speaking differently than the rest of us. We learned that it was from these books she had been reading.” Lexa explained further trying not to leave out any details. “She was saying things differently than us, soon she was telling us what words meant.”

 

“Do you know where she got these books from?” Clarke asked hoping that maybe she could find a book on art there.  

 

Lexa nodded, “Yes, however a few years ago the mountain men had learned of this and found the library. They burned it to the ground.”

 

“That’s terrible,” Clarke was bummed that she wouldn’t be able to see this library.

 

“Yes, but that is why she speaks the way she does. She is more like you than me,” Lexa pointed out realizing just how similar Clarke and Sierra spoke.

 

“You know, now that you mention it. She really does speak similar to the way I do.” Clarke couldn’t help but to think about a library and all the many books that would have filled the shelves. Without realizing it she was pulling herself back under the covers.

 

Lexa watched this and couldn’t help but to do the same. Once under the covers, she turned her head in Clarke’s direction and whispered, “Goodnight Clarke.”

 

Clarke looked back at Lexa, “Goodnight,” she whispered back before her eyelids became heavy and she let the comfort and warmth of the furs take her over as she dozed off into sleep.

 

Lexa couldn’t help but to watch Clarke fall asleep, once she did, soon after she did the same.


	13. Day 5

**_DAY 5_ **

****

_~Dream Sequence~_

_Lexa was jolted into partial consciousness as she landed on hard metal. The cool feel of the metal against her exposed skin as well as the scent of blood made her head spin. However, even with all that she could make out some voices but she couldn’t move. It was as though she wasn’t in control of her body; she was just a consciousness that could hear what was happening around her, nothing more. She could however, distinguish two separate male voices that appeared to be yelling at each other._

_“Yuki, you idiot, what were you thinking?!” That deeper voice got louder and louder as it seemed to get closer to where she had been on the ground. “The people of this land are not supposed to know we exist… They defeated the people in that mountain like it was nothing.” She didn’t catch everything they were saying because she kept going in and out of consciousness. The pain in her arm was too much for her to stay focused._

_Another voice began speaking, “I wanted to save someone for once! We have lost so many people in this war…”_

_Lexa couldn’t tell which one was the leader because they both seemed very forceful. However, from the tone of the second one’s voice, it sounded to her like that one did more defending then anything._

_“… It could have been what we were looking for in this war but now we’ll never know because you wanted to be a hero.” Lexa could hear the first speaker’s voice get closer to her and then walk somewhere else._

_After some movement, she could hear the other one start talking above her, “… she’s going to die with this injury if I don’t heal it a little.”_

_“If you heal her, then she might wake up…” She heard the original speaker say as though he didn’t want to save her._

_“If I don’t she’ll die right here on this ship!” This second voice seemed to want to save her…_

_~Dream Sequence Ended~_

Lexa slowly opened her eyes as she thought ‘ _that was strange.’_ She shook the thought from her mind and looked around the tent to find Clarke lying on her stomach facing her. Lexa could see a smile gracing the sky leader’s face and she couldn’t help but smile as she was able to witness such a moment. Trying not to wake up Clarke, Lexa wiggled her way out of the bed to stand up. Once she was sure she had gotten up without waking Clarke, she moved to get dressed before making her way out of the tent.

 

Stepping out into the cool fall air, she breathed in the scent of the moist grass covered in frost. As she opened her eyes she noticed the change of the leaves around her, the reds, orange and yellow mixed in with the remaining green leaves. Lexa knew that winter would be upon them in mere weeks. She could feel some pain in her arm from sleeping but she pushed it aside as she made her way toward her goal for the day.

 

It had been a very long time since she’d been in this village, it was a nice feeling but she also couldn’t help but remember that the last time she was here was for the coalition. She continued to make her way toward where she remembered Morad liked to train in the morning.

 

“Lexa, what are you doing out so early? I am told you are to be resting,” Morad appeared behind Lexa with a booming voice.

 

Most people would have jumped but not Lexa, she might have been lost in thought but she wasn’t appointed the position of commander for her good looks. She was made the commander because she had a strong spirit. The elders had chosen her for a reason. She turned around slowly making sure not to jostle her arm too much, “Have I ever been one to sit around while injured?” It was very rare that Lexa let out her playful side but she had known him for so long, she couldn’t help it.

 

Morad smiled, “Good point. How is your arm?” He asked curious to know how his almost daughter was feeling.

 

Lexa let out a small smile elated that he still cared for her even though it had been many months since she’d been there. “It is fine. Thank you for your concern.” She looked away briefly almost afraid to ask what she needed to ask. From her condition, she knew she needed to but she didn’t think it would be this hard to ask.

 

“You have gone quiet, what is wrong?” Morad asked noticing the change in her behaviour. He had an inkling of what the issue was but he wanted to see what Lexa said before assuming.

 

She turned but didn’t look at him afraid that he would be able to do what he always did, see right into her soul and know what she was thinking, “One of my warriors has challenged Clarke… I was wondering…” She trailed off and looked at him.

 

He nodded accepting her request. “You want me to continue her training.” He stated knowing that Lexa wouldn’t want to accept that she couldn’t do something. It was something he had always adored about the commander. No matter what the consequences were, she would be there, she would help when needed so for her to come to him and ask for help had to be hard.

 

She dropped her head in defeat and nodded. It was always her intention to train Clarke, even before she was challenged. Lexa had promised herself that she would train Clarke so that if she found herself without a gun, she would be able to defend herself but then Clarke was challenged and all of Lexa’s plans went away. Then they fell off that cliff and everything she had planned was gone.

 

He walked over to her and placed his right hand on her left shoulder making her look up, “I will help you. She will be in good hands. Clarke will be ready for the challenge. I promise you that.” He bowed his head as a promise.

 

“Thank you,” Lexa finally found her voice and was able to give her appreciation for what he was doing. Now she had to find a way to tell Clarke because she knew that Clarke liked Lexa’s training and changing over to another person could be hard.    

 

“Tell Clarke, we will start tomorrow. Sierra has told me that she needed at least a day to heal. You make sure she heals and I will be prepared to start training tomorrow.” He stated stepping back from Lexa to look at her completely.

 

Lexa nodded her head, “You have my word that she will be ready.” With that she turned to leave because she couldn’t stand there any longer with the feeling of being useless. She needed to move past that feeling so that she could talk to Clarke without any emotion. This change in status wasn’t ideal but it was needed.

 

As Lexa made her way back toward the tent, she made a detour to talk to the village messenger. She knew where the tent was as she was often sending letters back to her village while she was visiting this one. Walking into the tent she was met with a burly man with a shaved head making him even more intimidating.

 

“What can I do for you?” His voice boomed as he asked faced away from her. Turning around he looked down to find the commander, “Apologies commander, I did not know…” The tone in his voice went from one of force to one of a scared child.

 

Lexa placed her left hand on his right arm, “Do not worry. You did not know I was the one in your tent.”

 

He nodded in agreement, “Commander, what can I do for you?”

 

“I need you to get a message to my people, can you do that?” Lexa asked him with that tone that said she meant business. It was her iconic commander voice that she used whenever she wanted something done right the first time. There were no second chances when she used this tone. It was either done the first time, or they didn’t live to try again.

 

He nodded, “Yes.” He leaned down and she began whispering a message into his ear.

 

Once she pulled away, he stood back up, and she told him where the message was to be taken. “Now I would like you to take this message back to my new village by the sky people’s fallen ship. Once there, find Indra and give it to her. Do you know where it is?”

 

“Yes, we scouted that area when it first landed, I know where it is.” He acknowledged standing tall in front of the commander.

 

“Good, now you better be off. I want it there as soon as possible.” Lexa stated moving to the side, feeling powerful for the first time since before they fell off that cliff.

 

“Yes Commander,” he walked past her and made his way to the gates to get the message to the commander’s new village.

 

XXXXXXXXXX

 

“We cannot keep thinking about what happened to them, we need to get ready for the coming cold months!” Indra exclaimed as she slammed her fist down on the table in the ark, irritated that these sky people couldn’t think past their leader being gone.

 

“Clarke could be out there hurt, maybe even dead!” Abby yelled back. “I am not letting my daughter rot out there with no one there to help her! We need to send someone!”  

 

“The Commander is with her! Do you not understand that she is not just the leader of the trikru?!” Indra fought back knowing that these sky people wouldn’t know anything about their heritage. “She is the leader of all twelve clans. The commander is more important than any of your leaders combined! Yet you do not see us scrambling to find her!”

 

Silence rings out in the ark meeting room as the information sunk into each any person in there. Those people included were, Lincoln, Octavia, Abby and Kane.

 

Indra’s tone of voice has calmed down much more than before but she still explains with force, “Death is a part of our lives. We have gotten used to it. With that said, we do not want our commander dead but we cannot do anything about it. She will either find her way back or we will never see them again.” She looked directly at Abby and pointed out, “Clarke has proven she is worthy to be one of us and if she and the commander are still alive they will find their way back.” The look she gave Abby was one of understanding. Almost as though she had lost someone close to her before and knew how Abby was feeling. “Until then, we need to agree upon a leader. The coming months will be colder than any of you can imagine, if we are not prepared, all of this will be for nothing.” She stopped and looked around the room at each face. “This alliance will have been for nothing.”

 

“Indra is right,” All eyes moved over to Lincoln. “The coming months are not a time to be unsure of what is to happen. We need a leader, someone who will take on the responsibilities of a leader, someone who will easily be able to make the right decisions, decisions that the commander and Clarke would have made. That is what we need.”

 

Abby spoke up, “I am the chancellor of the sky people, if anyone should be a leader, it should be me.”  

 

Indra shook her head, “No, you will only look out for your own people. My people will be lost. They would come second to your people. That is not the type of leader we need.”

 

In the background Kane just watched, he watched the exchange between each person as he pondered who he thought should be the leader.

 

It was Octavia’s turn to speak, “What if both of you do it?”

 

Indra and Abby look at Octavia and both exclaimed, “What?”

 

Nervously Octavia answered, “Well, I mean…” Indra gave her a look to get past the nervousness and speak. She stood tall and answered, “Indra, you said it yourself, Abby would look out for her people and you would look out for your people. If you two worked together then you would have someone watching both sides. Make decisions together.”

 

Indra looked from Octavia to Abby and just as she was about to say something Kane finally spoke.

 

“What if Octavia was the interim leader?” He pulled himself from the wall he was leaning against and made his way to the circle around the table.

 

Indra eyed Kane, “Explain.”

 

Kane motioned to Octavia with his hand before looking between Abby and Indra, “Octavia is a part of both worlds. She may be a sky person originally but she is now a part of the trikru. She would think about both sides. Octavia is the closest thing we have to another Clarke.”

 

His words sunk into both sides and even Octavia. She had never really thought of herself as a leader but what Kane had to say made sense. She was the closest thing to who Clarke was as a leader.

 

Abby looked to Octavia and could see the wonder in her eyes and then looked at Indra, “What do you think about this idea?”

 

Indra finally looked away from Kane and back to Abby before looking at Octavia, “Would you want to be a leader?”

 

Octavia really embraced the idea and finally looked at Indra, “To be honest, I never thought of myself as a leader but I do know that with both of your guidance I could do it.”

 

Abby smiled at Octavia before looking back to Indra and putting out her hand, “I will do it if you do.”

 

Indra continued to stare at Octavia trying to get a complete read on her. When she was satisfied with what she could see she looked back to Abby and looked at the hand. _Sky people tradition was so strange,_ Indra thought to herself as she hesitantly placed her hand in Abby’s and shook it. “Then it is settled.” Indra moved around the table to stand in front of Octavia, “You will be the new leader until one can be properly chosen in the Conclave.”

 

“The Conclave?” Octavia asked curious to learn about something she’d never heard before.

 

“That is for another time, for now, we need to think about our people.” Indra stated deflecting the question that Octavia was so curious about.

 

Octavia turned away from Indra and she was overcome with a new power she didn’t know she had. She looked upon the three adults in front of her with Lincoln standing next to her, “Where should we begin?”

 

The room erupted with things that needed to be dealt with and Octavia couldn’t stop smiling internally knowing that these people trusted her to make the right decision.

 

XXXXXXXXXXX

 

Lexa walked toward the food that had been prepared for breakfast to grab a plate for Clarke when she heard a familiar laugh in the vicinity. Turning her head to the right, at the other end of the makeshift table she could see the familiar blonde hair of the one and only sky leader, Clarke. She picked up a plate for herself and made her way over to where Clarke was sitting. If it were possible, her shoulders sunk down even more as she neared Clarke, only to find that the person she was laughing with was none other than Sierra.

 

“Clarke, should you not be resting?” Lexa asked sounding a tad irritated as she stood next to the chair at the head of the table trying to show power over the situation by looking down at Clarke.

 

Clarke’s laughter slowly died as she leaned back in her chair to look up at Lexa and challenged her with, “No, Sierra’s exact words were that I shouldn’t put pressure on my ankle. Not that I need to lie around in the tent all day.”

 

“If you do not rest, your ankle will not heal,” Lexa raised an eyebrow in question as she watched Clarke stare at her.

 

“What do you think these are for?” Clarke pointed to the crutches she had made the day before. “These allow me to get around without having to step on my foot. So I am basically healing without sitting around doing nothing.”

 

“Clarke, you-“

 

Clarke cut off Lexa’s incessant pestering to tell her how to spend her free day of no training. “Lexa, this is the first village I have seen that wasn’t one of yours and a clan I’d never known existed. I want to spend this day getting to know this area because I don’t know when we’ll be back here.”

 

Sierra cleared her throat causing Clarke and Lexa to look at her. She just ignored Lexa’s look of annoyance and added, “Actually, technically speaking, this village is Lexa’s.”

 

Lexa nodded and Clarke looked at the two of them confused, “No, Lexa is the leader of the Trikru. This is the Marsh People.”  

 

Lexa went to answer when Sierra cut in again, “Lexa is the commander.”

 

“Yeah, the commander of the trikru,” Clarke cut off Sierra’s explanation.

 

Finally Lexa got a word in, “The trikru are my people yes but commander is not a title that I have for them.” Lexa finally took a seat in the chair at the foot of the table to be eye level to Clarke. “I am the reason that the twelve clans all get alone. I united them all and because of that, I have the title of commander. Sierra is right. In a way, this is one of my villages.” She finished explaining as she took a piece of the meat in front of her and tossed it in her mouth.

 

“Is that how come you were able to command all of those grounders into war?” Clarke asked wondering why she never connected the dots before. She had always thought maybe Lexa had spoken to the other leaders and made the decision that she would lead due to Mount Weather being in her territory. She didn’t know that it was because Lexa had more power than she had originally thought. Lexa was basically the kings and queens she had read about growing up.

 

Lexa nodded, “Yes.”

 

“Wow…” Clarke didn’t know how to continue the conversation as the three of them sat their quietly.

 

Out of nowhere, Sierra’s voice piped up with, “That’s a point for Clarke.” The two of them turn to stare at Sierra. “What? Clarke clearly won the argument there about why she’s not resting.”

 

Lexa shook her head.

 

“That makes us all tied with one point,” Sierra pointed out pulling out a piece of cloth and charcoal to write on the cloth. “See?” She pointed to the cloth, “we’re all tied.”

 

Clarke puts up her right hand for a high five forgetting who she’s with, when Sierra slammed her right hand against Clarke’s with a slap. She didn’t know what to say she was too shocked that someone actually understood what just happened there.

 

“Don’t look so surprised Clarke, I’ve read about high fives. I’m just excited that there is someone here who finally understands it.” Sierra grinned as she tossed the remaining berries into her mouth. She turned her eyesight from Clarke to Lexa, “Do you think you’ll have time to visit our spot while you’re here?”

 

Lexa looked up from her food to look at Sierra, “Yes. I planned on doing that today.”

 

The mood suddenly changed amongst the three of them. It wasn’t one of humour and laughter anymore. It was one of deep feeling. Lexa had a look in her eyes that said she wasn’t going there for pleasure. It was for something more.

 

“Do you mind if I tag along?” Sierra asked wanting to make sure that Lexa was alright.

 

Lexa nodded and looked over to Clarke, “You may come as well, if you would like to, Clarke.”

 

“I would like that.” Clarke didn’t know how to take this sudden change in mood but she wanted to know what was causing this mood change.

 

XXXXXXXXX

 

About an hour later, the three of them made their way outside of the village with two guards walking behind them in a distance. Morad had ordered them to watch the commander regardless of what she was doing and this moment was no different.

 

The time it took to get to their spot was a bit longer due to Clarke and her crutches but there wasn’t much they could do about it because the terrain wouldn’t have been good for a horse and would have slowed them down even more. In the past, Sierra and Lexa would use the trees to get there because the trees were so close in proximity to each other. This made it difficult for a horse and for Clarke with her crutches but she was determined to make it work.

 

They walked out of the trees and out in the clearing was a small body of water with a waterfall crashing down into it. Clarke looked up at the waterfall and could see that it was only a few meters off the body of water which from the height looked like it would make a perfect way to jump into the water down below. “This place is beautiful,” Clarke was in awe at the sweet smells of the water and the flowers in the area.

 

Sierra walked out onto the rocks and immediately took advantage, she began taking off her armour and clothing, down to her black shorts and holey shirt before climbing the few rocks that lead to the top of the waterfall. Once on top, she took in the view and as usual she could make out some of mount weather in the far distance before cannonballing into the water below. Clarke was close enough that she got wet from the splash whereas Lexa was far enough back that she didn’t get wet.

 

Clarke looked back at Lexa smiling when she finally took notice of Lexa, really took in what was going on with her, “What’s wrong?”

 

Lexa swallowed nervously trying to keep her emotions in check but being here in this moment was really hard for her because of the last time she was here. She made her way to the edge of the water before sitting down on the rocks edge and taking off her boots and rolling up her pants before putting her feet in the warm water.

 

After swimming around the water a bit, she finally swam over to where Lexa was, “You’re thinking about her, aren’t you?” She watched as Clarke came over and sat down next to Lexa putting her crutches on the ground next to her. Without any hesitation, Sierra swiped her hands against the water and splashed Clarke.

 

“Sierra, really?” Clarke put her hands out in annoyance before trying to reach into the water to splash Sierra a little.

 

“That was lame Clarke.” Sierra chuckled before looking back at Lexa again. All joking aside she tried to soothe Lexa, “You now she’d be proud of you right?”

 

Lexa nodded, “I know.” Out of her pocket, she pulled out a familiar braid of hair and couldn’t help but feel the hair between her fingers, every strand grazing her fingers, and with it every memory of her came too.

 

Clarke recognized the braid, “That’s Anya’s isn’t it?”

 

Lexa nodded again, “Yes.”

 

“Is that why we’re here? Did you and Anya find this place together?” Clarke asked curious to learn more about Anya as well as understand this other side of Lexa.

 

“No, Sierra and I found this place,” Lexa corrected Clarke.

 

“Yeah we did. Lexa and I discovered it when we were kids. Every time her father came to visit, her and I would come here and have fun. It’s always been a nice escape from the world,” Sierra explained as she thought of the time they had found it and all the times they had fun playing in and around it. Sierra looked up into the trees nearby and could see the two guards shaking their heads at her explanation. She knew that they were often the ones that had to pull them back to camp.

 

Clarke looked between Lexa and Sierra before looking back at Lexa, “Then why does this place make you think of Anya if you and Sierra only ever came here?”

For the first time, since they came to this place Lexa let a smile graze her lips, “We are here because this is the last time I really saw Anya that was not about war. I had not seen her in many months until your ship fell from the sky. From that point on, every conversation was about how to kill your people.”      

 

Clarke didn’t know how to respond to that statement because as much as she felt like it was her fault that Lexa’s last memory of Anya was of her going into war, she knew that if they hadn’t of fought the grounders, they wouldn’t be alive right now. Let alone the fact that both of their people wouldn’t be free of the mountain men right now.

 

The memory came over Lexa and she couldn’t help but re-iterate it for Clarke’s benefit because she knew Sierra remembered the moment, “Anya had caught the two of us here while I was here as a customary thing for uniting the clans. Do you remember that Sierra?”

 

Sierra nodded, “Yeah we were swimming in the water when a shadow appeared on top of the waterfall…”

 

_Anya Memory…_

_“What do you think you are doing?” A shadow above them spoke in a deeper female voice._

_The sun was blocking who was on the waterfall but Lexa would know that voice anywhere, “Anya, it is fine.”_

_Anya made her way down the waterfall rocks before coming face to face with the two girls in the water, “Where are your guards?”_

_Lexa swam to the edge of the water and pulled herself out of the water to look up at her former mentor. There was a bit of a height difference with Lexa being a tad shorter but even with her change in position, she still felt like Anya’s second standing in her presence. “I did not think I needed guards. It is just Sierra and I.”_

_“Lexa, you are the commander now.” Anya stared down into emerald eyes with force. “You cannot be wandering around these woods without a guard. I trained you better than this.”_

_“Anya, it is fine. I just united the clans. There is no need to worry for my safety.” Lexa pointed out the reasoning she was even in this village. “If I am able to get past the ice queen killing Costia, I think I can survive in these woods alone.”_

_“What about reapers or the animals in these woods? What will you do when they show up?” Anya was not backing down and Lexa knew it. “As commander you must have guards with you at all times, you know that. It does not matter that you united the twelve clans or not. You are the coalition, if something happens to you, the coalition of the twelve clans will break and we will go back to fighting with each other again. Is that what you want? Do you want to be the leader who not only united the clans but was careless enough to be killed and break the coalition?”_

_Lexa didn’t know what to say to that, she wanted to be strong against her mentor but everything Anya had to say was true and Lexa didn’t know how she could fight against it. “Uh…”_

_“You cannot be unsure of what you are doing Lexa. I trained you better than that.” Anya stared down at the commander with no fear. She knew that she was probably one of the only people that could challenge the commander and not die for it. “Well…”_

_Lexa swallowed nervously before standing up tall and putting on her stern ‘don’t mess with me’ commander face, “I will do as I see fit. You have made a valid point when it comes to needing guards. I will make sure to have guards from this point forward.”_

_“Good, we do not need to lose another leader.” Anya advised as she removed the swords from her back as well as take off her heavy jacket._

_“What are you doing?” Lexa asked forcefully still stuck in her commander tone._

_“Well, since I am here and brought guards, I thought I might as well take advantage of this situation.” Anya smirked at Lexa as she dropped her heavy jacket on the rocks next to her swords._

_Lexa quirked her eyebrows in confusion just as Anya tackled Lexa into the water below._

_Anya emerged from the water, the black paint running down her face, with the biggest smile anyone had ever seen on her face before, “What have I said about keeping your guard up?”_

_“To always have it up regardless of who you are with,” Lexa answered pushing her hair out of her face._

_“Yes,” Anya said as she shoved some water in Sierra’s direction._

_In that moment, Lexa was able to see the part of Anya that she very rarely was able to see with her becoming the commander of their people._

_End Memory…_

“Is that why you made sure I always had guards with me?” Clarke asked as Lexa finished telling the memory.

 

Lexa nodded, “Yes. Anya taught me a valuable lesson that day. Once our two people united, I needed to make sure you always had protection because if I need it, so do you.” She finished explaining her reasoning’s.

 

“I wish I could have known Anya outside of war.” Clarke stated staring down at the water next to her. “From your story she seemed like someone I would want to know.”

 

“Anya was a wonderful mentor, I could always count on her getting a job done. Coming here was my way of saying goodbye to her, now that the war is over,” Lexa explained as she put the hair braid back into her pocket. She was considering on dropping it in the water as a final goodbye but she couldn’t bring herself to do it.

 

Sierra broke the serious moment by splashing the two leaders with water, “Opps, did I splash you?” She asked innocently.

 

Lexa used her feet to splash Sierra in the face with water.

 

All the while, Clarke was dying of laughter next to them as they continued to fight by splashing water at each other.


	14. Day 6 (Part 1)

**_DAY 6_ **

****

_~Dream Sequence~_

_Lexa found herself laying on the cold metal once again and just like the night before she couldn’t move, and she had this sense not to open her eyes due to the familiar voices speaking again._

_“…I won’t heal it completely. Just enough, that when they wake up, they won’t remember we saved them.” From her dream the night before she had determined that the one that wanted to save her was named Yuki. This must be him speaking again. She could feel him moving her arm before something warm touched her skin where the injury was. It didn’t hurt too much but it did create a tingling sensation, almost like something was crawling on her but not. Lexa didn’t know how to describe the feeling, all she knew was that it was a feeling she had never felt in her entire life._

_Lexa could hear the other man in the room move away from her and kneel down a little ways from her when she heard his voice on her level, “With the way this one’s ankle is situated, it looks broken…. Do you want to heal it so that it’s only sprained?”_

_‘Who could they be talking about?’ Lexa thought to herself. She very much wanted to open her eyes but something in the core of her being was telling her that would be a bad idea._

_A few minutes later, Lexa could feel the man tending to her arm get up and make his way over to this other person in the room. Her arm did feel significantly better but it still hurt more than she’d ever felt pain in her life._

_In that moment, she decided to take a leap. She wanted to know who was in the room with her and who these people were. The commander, the leader part of her wanted to know so that she might assess the situation. She decided that if she only opened her eyes a little that she could get an idea of who she was dealing with. Carefully, and oh so slow, she opened her eyes just a little bit, not completely but just a little. The world seemed so blurry from her injuries and the fact that she hadn’t opened her eyes completely but it was worth it. Not too far from her, she could see blonde hair, hair that she would recognize anywhere. ‘Clarke…’ she thought as she took in the appearances of the two men. One looked to be of a taller statue but she wasn’t too sure because he was kneeled down next to Clarke’s ankle. ‘That one must be Yuki.’ Lexa thought before directing her eyesight over to the clearly shorter and fatter little man kneeled on the other side of Clarke. Lexa hadn’t heard his name yet but before she could really take in the situation she could feel the pain taking over so she closed her eyes to hopefully hold it in so that they don’t know she’s awake._

_~Dream Sequence Ended~_

“Clarke…” Lexa opened her eyes in a start sitting up looking around in a panic.

 

“Yeah,” Clarke asked from the foot of the bed with her back to Lexa standing on her two feet.

 

When realization hit Lexa as to where she was, looking at the back of Clarke, she took in a deep breath and let it go slowly trying to make it known to herself that what she’d just seen was just a dream, nothing more. The sudden jolt made her shoulder twang; she gritted her teeth and brought her left hand up to rub her right shoulder.

 

“Oh, is your shoulder bothering you?” Clarke asked now staring right at Lexa from her standing position.

 

Lexa didn’t want to look weak in front of Clarke so she shook her head from side to side, “No, I’m just not used to sleeping on this bed. It is not the same as the one I have become accustomed too.”

 

Clarke nodded as she sat down on the bed, “That makes sense.” She reached for her boots lying next to the bed and began putting them on her feet. “Can we do some training today? My ankle is feeling great.”

 

Lexa went silent for a moment. She knew she should have told Clarke the day before that she wasn’t going to be training her anymore but with all the fun they had at Sierra and hers secret place, it had slipped her mind. “About that…”

 

Clarke finished tying the last lace on her boot before turning back to Lexa, “Yes.”

 

“I will not be training you anymore,” Lexa looked deep into those blue eyes she had fallen for days ago.

 

“What do you mean? You said you would train me for the challenge. How am I supposed to win with the tactics I have right now?” Clarke asked completely flabbergasted that Lexa would leave her for dead.

 

“You will still be trained…” Lexa trailed off knowing she needed to explain but didn’t want to because it meant showing weakness. She gulped nervously before explaining, “Morad has agreed to continue your training for me.”

 

Clarke scrunched up her eye brows, “Why can’t you do it? I have gotten used to your training techniques.”

 

Lexa got up from the bed and moved toward the table where she had placed her clothing so not to look Clarke in the face. “You know I cannot train you like this.” She barely answered above a whisper. She could feel Clarke’s eyes on her back and it was killing her to tell Clarke this.

 

Clarke stood up from the bed, “You said that you would be able to train me with your injuries. What changed?”

 

Lexa pulled her top over her head and turned around to face Clarke, “When I told you that I was under the impression that you and I were going to be on our own.” She let that sink into Clarke. After pulling on her pants, Lexa moved to grab her weapon lying next to the bed, “Look at where we are. We are in the Marsh People’s village. We are not alone. You need someone who can train you properly. With my injuries, I cannot do that… but he can.” Lexa tried to lift her sword up onto her back but her shoulder and arm pain were preventing her.

 

Clarke could see Lexa struggling so after she finished buckling her own sword onto her back she walked around the bed to where Lexa was, “Let me help you.” Lexa didn’t struggle as Clarke helped her get her sword attached to her back and the right buckles buckled.

 

“Thank you,” Lexa couldn’t help but to look Clarke right in the eyes before moving past her. “This decision did not come easy, Clarke. You will learn better, faster if you learn from Morad.” She didn’t want to stick around any longer so she looked back briefly giving a weak smile before walking out of the tent leaving Clarke behind.

 

Clarke walked out of the tent toward the area where breakfast was set it hopes of finding Lexa but when she got their Lexa was nowhere to be found.

 

She ate in peace until Morad came up to her and sat down in the seat next to hers, “Are you ready to train?”

 

Clarke didn’t want to be disrespectful so she tried to look excited and nodded her head. After swallowing the food she had in her mouth, she responded with, “Yes, I am. When do we start?”

 

“When you are done, we’ll go over to the training area. First I am going to assess what you have learned and then we will begin. Sound good?” Morad asked wanting to make sure that Clarke would be prepared.

 

XXXXXXXXX

 

About a half hour later, Clarke and Morad were in the middle of the training grounds. There were several groups of grounders doing all different types of training from something simple as clearing one’s mind to sword fighting.

 

Clarke was a bit relieved that there were several groups because this way the focus might not be on her completely so she could focus on the fighting and not on other grounders critiquing her every move.

 

“Forget them.” He motioned to the groups around them and put his hand on Clarke’s shoulder to look right at him, “Clarke, you need to learn to be in the moment and block everything else out. When you do the challenge, people will be surrounding the fight, if you let them get to you, you will lose.”

 

Clarke took in a deep breath and looked right at him determined, “Okay, how do I do that?”

 

Morad pulled back to look at her, “How about you ask Lexa that?”

 

Clarke looked at him confused, “I thought you were training me?”

 

“I am, but only on the fighting aspect. Learning how to block out everything but the fight at hand is part of it, yes, but Lexa should be doing all of the training and cannot. If you go to her and ask her to help you with that, she will not feel so bad.” Morad explained knowing that there was a chance that Lexa might be angry with him for sharing something so personal but he figured that because they were companions that it would be okay. He turned and picked something up out of the bag he had brought with him, “Here, take this.”

 

Clarke reached for a belt that had a sheath for a dagger, “What am I to do with this, I don’t have a-“

 

She was cut off by Morad handing her a dagger, “Here you go. I noticed that you didn’t have a dagger with you and a dagger is as important as your sword is. It is what you rely on if you lose your sword in battle.”

 

“Thank you but I’m sure Lexa will provide me with a dagger,” Clarke tried to give the dagger back.

Morad shook his head, “Keep it. Think of it as a pre-challenge motivator. Besides, you need a weapon to train with.”

 

Clarke looked over the intricacy of the design on the blade as well as the handle attached to it, “Is this a leader thing?” She could see Morad look at her confused. “What I mean is the design on the blade. Lexa’s dagger has a design on it as well.”

 

He pulled out his dagger to show Clarke, “Each blade is different as you can see. When we are creating our blades, a lot of our soul goes into it and as such we put a little of ourselves into the design of the blade.” He stood closer so that he was right next to Clarke, that way she could really compare the two blades, “The blade I gave you is a more recent blade that I created, as you look at each design it shows how I have changed as leader, as a person. If you look at my blade, one of my original blades, the lines are more jagged because at that time, our clans were at constant war. Until Lexa was chosen as the Trikru’s leader, she found a way to get past even her own troubles and united all twelve clans. Ever since then things have been less stressful especially now with the defeat of the mountain men.” He nudged Clarke with his right arm, “Good job with that by the way.” He moved away from her.

 

 _‘Lexa was right. The defeat of the mountain has spread’_ Clarke thought to herself. “So, how are we going to train?”

 

Morad turned around to face Clarke, “I’m going to start to show you some ways to use your dagger in any situation. There are different ways to hold a dagger, each person is different. So find the way that you feel comfortable with and run with it.”

 

Clarke nodded her head, “Alright.” She held the handle of the knife with the blade pointing up. “I’m ready.”

 

“So we begin…” With that Morad went into detail on how to use a dagger and how effective it can be in any situation.

 

XXXXXXXXX

 

“Lexa, you’re going to feel even worse if you continue to torture yourself by watching someone else train Clarke.”

 

Lexa turned her head to the right to find Sierra standing next to her, “I just want to make sure that he trains her to the same caliber that I would.” She looked back at the training between Morad and Clarke in the distance.

 

“That’s not why you’re standing here and you know it.” Sierra pointed out as she too looked on at Clarke’s training with Morad.

 

“Why would I be standing here for any other reason?” Lexa asked feeling a bit odd asking a question. Being the commander, she’s used to giving orders not asking questions.

 

Sierra turned to give Lexa her full attention even though Lexa was determined not to look at her, “You’re jealous.”

 

Finally Lexa turned to face Sierra fully. In other situations with other people, she might have lied but not to Sierra. Sierra was different. “I promised Clarke that I would train her for the challenge and now I cannot. I cannot train her because I did not pay attention to our surroundings and we fell off that cliff. All of this, my arm, her ankle, the fact that we are even here… is my fault.”

 

Sierra placed a hand on Lexa’s left shoulder to comfort her, “This is not your fault. You could not have predicted what expired in the woods. No one can predict when the earth will shake and neither can you.”  

 

“But I could-“

 

“No! Lexa, this is not your fault. I’ll keep telling you that until you believe me.” Sierra raised her eyebrows looking at Lexa with wide eyes to make sure Lexa didn’t try to cross her. “You know I’ll win.”

 

A smile couldn’t help but graze Lexa’s lips, “Have you forgotten that I am the commander of the twelve clans? I am sure I would beat you now.”

 

Sierra laughed, “Ha, I do not doubt you would try but I’m sure you would succumb to me. You always have. Always will.” She smiled. “Now, come on. We need to get you away from this area.” Sierra practically shoved Lexa away from the treeline of the training area and walked away.

 

XXXXXXXXXXX

 

Indra was making her rounds around camp as she came across a group of Grounders laughing. Curiosity struck and she made her way toward the group to learn what was so funny.

 

“Clarke probably slipped on a rock causing her to fall off that cliff. Could you imagine that?” Laughter erupted at the comment.

 

Someone else added in, “Or or maybe her clumsy feet tripped on a twig.” More laughter erupted.

 

“How our ruthless commander fell for that, I’ll never know…” His eyes were directed at a familiar dark woman pushing her way through the crowd.

 

Indra finally got through the crowd to see Cyrus looking right at her, “How dare you speak ill of our commander.”

 

“Oh Indra, have you come to join in on the fun?” Cyrus smirked at her knowing just how he could push her buttons.

 

“The fun?” She clenched her jaw as pure rage engulfed her entire being. “Our commander is lost, possibly dead and here you are making jokes about it.”  

 

“I am merely stating a fact. Clarke is not one of us. She will never be one of us. If she’s still alive, which I highly doubt, I will make swift work of her death. Ain’t that right?” He asked looking around at the crowd her created.

 

A unanimous “Yeah!” erupted from the crowd.

 

“QUIET!” Indra ordered and the crowd silenced. “Clarke has proven her worth. She did not need to be challenged by you…” She trailed off looking at him square in the eyes. If looks could kill, Cyrus would surely be dead. Looking away from him, she looked from person to person in the crowd as she explained, “She did what our people did not think of doing. She, like our commander, put our differences aside to come together for a common goal. With the help of the sky people, we have defeated an enemy that has terrorized our people for as long as any of us can remember. If it was not for her, our people would still be turned into monsters, drained of blood, and used for their own survival.” She stopped looking at everyone else and directed her eyesight back on Cyrus. “If you did not challenge Clarke, I would kill you right now. However, because of our laws for challenging, I do not want to die for you.” She turned to walk away.  

 

“You do not think that I will beat Clarke, Indra?” Cyrus challenged as he stood from his chair to look at her eye to eye.

 

Indra turned around to face him; she chuckled at his accusation before pointing out, “Remember Cyrus, our commander is training her. Neither you nor I can beat the commander in a fight. Do you really believe that the commander would let Clarke go into a fight not being as well trained as she is?”

 

He crossed arms and held his stance, “I think that learning what we learn our entire lives in only a few days, is not possible. Clarke will not be even close to how good our commander is at fighting. She might come close, but she will never be as good. Not in that short amount of time.”

 

“Do not let your ego become you Cyrus. If the commander were here listening to you right now, she would have you killed.” Indra stared him down.

 

He shook his head, “She would not dare. Our law states-“

 

“Our law was forged from an alliance she created with the twelve clans. If she wanted to get around that law, she would. She would find a way to kill you for talking ill about her and the sky leader.” She took a few steps toward him, making the distance between the two of them decreasingly less, “Know this Cyrus, if you win the challenge you better run far because there will be nothing that will stop me from killing you.”

 

“You would not dare,” he tried to show force but it was dwindling from the look in Indra’s eyes.    

 

“Try me. Stay here and be in constant fear that your life will end or leave. The choice will be yours. Just know this, it is no secret that our commander has feelings for the sky leader. I would not doubt that her blade would meet your throat if you win.” With that she turned to leave him with that information swirling in his mind.

 

Cyrus sat back down in the chair and all of a sudden everyone become quiet. No more jokes were spoken; the only thing left was the sound of the wind whistling through the leaves. Slowly each person left him to stew.

 

XXXXXXXXXXX

 

Lexa and Sierra were walking through the crowded paths of the village they were in. It had been several hours since Sierra had pulled Lexa from the training ground. They both knew that the training Clarke was going through would be coming to an end soon and they both knew that Clarke would be passing through this area soon.

 

After several attempts earlier, Sierra has determined how she wants to ask what she needs to ask, “Tell me the truth, Lexa.”

 

Lexa stopped pacing to look her friend in the eyes, “Truth about what?”

 

“You know what.” Sierra looked at Lexa waiting for a response when none came she continued. “I know you Lexa. I know how you are when you’re in love with someone. Now I know that you love Clarke…” She trailed off as she looked around to make sure no one was paying any attention to their conversation. She lowered her voice just in case, “But there is no way you two are really companions.”

 

Lexa’s eyes opened wide at the accusation and she automatically pulled Sierra off to the side of the path. She looked inside the structure to make sure no one could listen in on their conversation. “Why would you make such an accusation?”

 

“Lexa, the fact that you just pulled me to the side says to me that what I am accusing you of is true. No one with something to hide would do that. So tell me, why are you lying to my people?” Sierra made sure to continue whispering for fear that someone might overhead. She might not understand what Lexa was doing but in the end Lexa was still her friend and she needed to protect her friend.

 

Lexa looked around briefly before whispering, “I am doing it for her.”

 

Sierra’s eyebrows scrunched together in confusion, “What do you mean? With your past, choosing to tell my people that you two are on your way to be united is not something you say lightly.”

 

Questions kept running through Lexa’s mind on repeat. _What did she do to make her friend not believe her? What if Sierra wasn’t the only one who suspected her motives? What if Sierra told someone else? What would happen to Clarke if someone were to learn of the truth?_

Sierra noticed that Lexa was lost so she grabbed her shoulders and shook Lexa out of it, “Lexa, get a grip. I would never betray your trust. I just want to know why?”

 

Lexa looked up into Sierra’s eyes and could see the loyalty reflected in them, “I wanted the choice to be hers and hers alone.”

 

Sierra quirked her eyebrow up when realization hit her, “Wait… You are doing this because you don’t want her to be claimed by my people?” It was more of a question than a statement.

 

“Yes. She has only ever been with my people; she has never been in another village. I did not want her to lose out on something she clearly wants…” Lexa trailed off not wanting to say the word for fear that someone might think she was weak.

 

“Love,” Sierra finished off the sentence and looked at Lexa in a whole new light. It wasn’t that they were two friends trying to understand each other’s motives. Sierra was witnessing something she didn’t think was possible. After Costia, Sierra did not think that Lexa could love again. In this moment, Sierra believed that was possible again. Her friend, her almost sister, had found someone that she could love. She couldn’t be more proud. She smiled as warmth filled her being, “Lexa… I will keep this secret safe.”

 

“Thank you.” Lexa responded with a brief smile.

 

A smile that was cut off by Clarke’s lips connecting with hers. It was completely out of the blue and unexpected. At first her brain was in too much shock to realize what was happening. Clarke had not only kissed her out of the blue but on top of that had gained the upper hand on her and shoved her into the nearest wall. She knew this to be true as she felt the sharp pain of her back connecting with the building’s wall.

 

After the sudden shock had worn off, she felt warmth take over her over body as Clarke’s lips connected with her neck. She wanted to tell Clarke to stop, to learn where this was coming from but she couldn’t. Something was stopping her. The feel of Clarke’s hands on her body as well as her lips coasting along her neck, almost made her weak in the knees.

 

In her haze of feeling every little nip along her neck, she swore she heard Clarke say something into her ear. Clarke pulled away briefly to look her in the eyes, then went to the other side of her neck but this time immediately went for her ear to whisper something.

 

“I’ll explain later, just go with it.”

 

Lexa heard what Clarke had to say this time around. Was she still insanely aroused? Yes but now she knew that there must be a reason behind Clarke’s outburst of affection. So for the moment, Lexa allowed it to happen. She didn’t want to blow whatever plans Clarke had for this moment. In this moment, she would let herself feel for a bit before dealing with the outcome of what these emotions let free will do to the both of them.

 

Will it lead to something more or will it hinder their relationship more?


	15. Day 6 (Part 2)

**_DAY 6 CONTINUED – 15 MINUTES EARLIER…_ **

****

Clarke and Morad were making their way back toward the center of the village after a couple of hours of grueling training. Morad went over several types of training including that of hand to hand combat just in case her sword and dagger are lost, as well as several techniques on how she could use her dagger to her advantage. Clarke could definitely feel some bruises coming in but it was worth it. For the first time in a long time since landing on the ground, she wasn’t even a little afraid about meeting a grounder in the middle of the woods.

 

Did she still need more training to beat Cyrus? Yes, but at least in this moment of time she was feeling like she would have a good chance at beating Cyrus in this challenge. Six days ago, she would have told anyone that it’d be crazy for her to learn everything she needed to learn to have even a small chance to beat a grounder, but now… Now she actually believed that she had a chance. She had a chance to win against someone who had been training their entire life.

 

As they walked into the village, grounders of all ages were passing by them in a rush to wherever they were going. In the distance, Clarke spotted her. She could see the usually very emotionless, stoic commander, pacing back and forth in front Sierra. It put a smile to Clarke’s face to know that the fact that since the commander wasn’t training Clarke it was enough to cause her to pace back and forth.

 

A few meters from Sierra and Lexa, Morad stopped in his tracks. Clarke turned around and looked at him with confusion as the look on his face was unreadable. “What’s wrong?” She asked feeling a tad worried for what might come from his mouth.

 

He pulled her to the side of the road and made sure no one was listening in on them. “I’m telling you this leader to leader, but you need to watch Sierra.”

 

Clarke furrowed her eyebrows, “Why would I need to watch Sierra? She’s been nothing but good to me since Lexa and I came to this village.”

 

“Look at them…” He pointed past Clarke to the two women having a conversation.

 

Clarke took notice that Lexa was no longer pacing but was now off to the side having what seemed like a very private conversation. Kind of like the conversation she and Morad were having. She turned around and looked at Morad, “What about them? They’re talking, just like you and I are now. What’s wrong with that?”

 

“Do you not see how close they are?” He asked as he briefly looked at the two women once more.

 

Clarke looked once more and then looked back to Morad, “They’re friends. Close friends from what I learned yesterday. It’s not strange for them to be close. Morad, what are you trying to imply? Just tell me.”

 

“Instead of holding onto this observation, I will share what I believe is true because if I am right, as much as I adore Lexa, from today I have learned that you are my equal and deserve to be treated as such-“

 

“Get on with it!” Clarke stared him down getting tired of him dancing around what he wanted to say.

 

“I think Lexa is going behind your back with Sierra.” He made the statement and kept his face very emotionless so not to give away his feelings toward this situation.

 

“Behind my back? You mean like cheating? You think Lexa is cheating on me with Sierra?” Clarke almost laughed at the accusation. Not just because the idea was so absurd but because there wasn’t anything to cheat on so if Lexa was ‘with Sierra’ it wouldn’t be considered cheating with their arrangement.

 

Morad placed a hand on Clarke’s shoulder, “Clarke, you have to understand, I’ve seen Lexa in love. Every time she was here with Costia, she made it very known that they were together but with you, it is like she is closed off. That is very unlike Lexa.”

 

Clarke shrugged his hand off her shoulder, “Then you also know how Costia died. Did you ever think that maybe Lexa does not want it to be known that she and I are…” She paused as the word took her over. “… engaged? That maybe she doesn’t want it to be too known so that someone doesn’t try to kill me just the same. I- I would hate for that to happen to her again.” Clarke looked over to Lexa and could see her looking down as though she didn’t want to say something.

 

“Wow, you really love her don’t you?” Morad stated as he could feel the love Clarke felt for Lexa emanating from her entire being.

 

Without thinking about it, without letting her brain stop her, she said what’s been on her mind for days, “I do.” Finally her mind caught up to what she said and she looked back a little nervous until an idea came to her. “You know what; I’ll prove it to you.”

 

Before Clarke knew what she was doing, she was making her way through the crowd, past the elders gathered in the clearing and past the children playing in the moss, without even thinking about it; she pushed past Sierra and connected her lips to Lexa’s. Taking advantage of the building they were right by, she walked Lexa back until her back connected with the building wall. The feel of Lexa’s lips on hers again, was mind-numbing and she couldn’t get enough of it. Clarke wanted to feel more, she wanted to taste more of Lexa, the commander she had grown very fond of in the couple weeks, Clarke’ lips left a trail along the commander’s jawline and onto her neck. Sucking at the flesh, feeling Lexa’s legs almost giving out gave her such drive to go further.

 

To prevent the commander from crumbling in front of her, Clarke placed her hands on Lexa’s waist. Her left hand having a mind of its own and feeling the skin under Lexa’s top. Clarke could feel the shivers being produced from every touch and every kiss.

 

Her mind finally caught up to her as she whispered into Lexa’s left ear, “This is to prove a point.” Clarke didn’t get any confirmation of the information being acknowledged so she pulled back briefly to get Lexa’s attention back. As soon as Lexa’s eyes opened, Clarke leaned in toward Lexa’s right ear and whispered, “I’ll explain later, just go with it.”

 

Now that Clarke knew Lexa knew there was a reason for this, she could feel things change a little; it was like she was starting to lose control of the situation. Lexa finally gained the upper hand and pulled herself away from the building and made Clarke start to move toward their tent. Lexa needed to know what this was about. What had caused Clarke to kiss her out of the blue?

 

As they made their way toward their tent, Morad moved closer to Sierra. “Well, I guess I don’t need to beat you up now.” He said as he stood next to Sierra as they continued to watch the two leaders make their way toward their tent.

 

Sierra looked away from the display of affection to look at Morad, “Why would you need to beat me up?”

 

“I thought you were going behind Clarke’s back with Lexa-“

 

“Are you kidding me?!” She cut him off. “Lexa is my friend, nothing more. One would have to be blind not to see the love those two have for each other.” Staring off at them she whispered under her breath,” Even if they don’t want to admit it.”

 

“What?” Morad asked not hearing what she said.

 

“Nothing, I’m going to get back to work.” Sierra turned to go back to her shop.

 

Morad was left there to think for a minute before he turned to leave.

 

XXXXXXXXXXX

 

As soon as Clarke and Lexa made their way into their tent, Clarke finally disconnected her lips from Lexa’s lips and let her hands slip off of her Lexa’s body. “Wow…” She whispered under breath.

 

Unbeknownst to her, Lexa heard and said the same thing, “Wow… indeed.” She ran her tongue along her swollen lips as she looked Clarke up and down. “What was that for? Clarke, I thought you were not ready.”

 

Clarke looked down at the scrolls scattering the table instead of looking at Lexa, she was still trying to catch her breath from all of the emotions that filled her being in last few minutes. “You’re right, I’m not ready.”

 

“Then what was that?” Lexa wasn’t going to jump to conclusions. She was going to let Clarke explain what that kiss was about. She wanted to move closer to Clarke but she did not want to scare Clarke away so she chose to hold her ground.

 

Clarke ran her tongue along her lips as well, not realizing that that could make the commander even hungrier for her. She finally looked back at Lexa. “Morad seemed to not believe that you and I could be companions so much so that he thought you were cheating on me with Sierra.”

 

“What? That is not true. Sierra and I are only friends. We have only ever been friends. She is and will never be more than that. You have to know that.” Lexa explained wanting to make sure that if there was any doubt for Clarke that she could prevent it now.

 

“I do know that,” Clarke reassured the commander a little afraid to get too close to Lexa.

 

“Then why, Clarke? Why do that?” Lexa wanted to ask more questions. She wanted to fully understand Clarke’s thinking.

 

Clarke swallowed nervously, “I got lost in the moment…” She trailed off before explaining further. “I knew that kissing you would be hard because we haven’t determined what we are… or at least I haven’t… but I also knew that there was doubt in this village. Doubt that you and I aren’t what we’re telling them. Which we aren’t, but they can’t know that. They need to believe that you and I are on our way to being united as one. I couldn’t let a little doubt break that so I did what I did because I knew… Lexa, I knew that if you were in my shoes you wouldn’t do it.”

 

Lexa found movement in her legs, and made her way toward Clarke, “I understand Clarke. Thank you for explaining.” She was a few steps away from Clarke and as much as she wanted to kiss her again, she held back for Clarke’s sake. “Know this Clarke; do not let what happened just now persuade you one way or another as far as our future will hold. As I said before, I want you to make this decision for yourself not for me. I am going to leave you to your own thoughts as I am sure you would like to be alone.” She was just about to exit the tent when Clarke’s voice stopped her.

 

“Actually…” Clarke watched as Lexa stopped in her tracks and turned around.

 

“Yes,” Lexa asked feeling a little shocked that Clarke actually stopped her from leaving.

 

“Um… While I was training today, Morad mentioned something that might help me focus in the challenge. He said that I should ask you to help me learn it so I thought maybe you could do that.” Clarke looked at Lexa hopeful that she would help her. As much as she’s learned from Morad, she still missed being trained by Lexa.

 

Lexa moved further into the tent curious about what it is that Clarke could be referring to, “What is it?”

 

“He said that one of the most important things about being in a fight is not only, being able to fight with your hands, sword or dagger but also being able to block out everything. That if I let the crowd affect me that that in itself could be my demise. Could you teach me?”

 

“It is getting late today, how about tomorrow morning before your next lesson with Morad?” Lexa asked a little excited that she would still be able to train Clarke.

 

Clarke nodded, “Okay. Let’s do that.” She watched Lexa turn around, “Hey, do you want to get our final meal together?” Clarke looked hopeful.

 

“Final meal?” Lexa asked immediately thinking about what could be Clarke’s final meal when they get back to their joint camp that doesn’t have a name yet.

 

“Oh, I mean last meal of the day. Sorry, I got a little confused. From the bruises to… well you know, it’s made me lose track of things I should know. Anyways, do you want to join me?” Clarke asked.

 

“If you will be alright with me being there, sure,” Lexa responded.

 

“I asked you; of course I’m okay with you being there Lexa.” Clarke pointed out. “Let’s go.” She passed Lexa and went out the tent.

 

Lexa smiled and followed her out.

 

XXXXXXXXXXXX

 

Back at the joint camp of grounders and sky people, Octavia was making her way around the camp looking for volunteers for her rescue party when Raven came running up to her.

 

“Octavia, are you busy right now?” Raven ran up to her a little out of breath.

 

“Yes, Raven I’m a little busy looking for volunteers but what can I do for you?” Octavia asked feeling like she might actually be able to help Raven instead of find people who would go against Indra’s orders.

 

“Okay, well could you maybe…” She trailed off as she realized what Octavia had just said. “Wait, why do you need volunteers?” Raven asked trying to think of what they could need volunteers for. The buildings that are being built for the winter are almost all complete. Even the one for Lexa, even though everyone is guessing on what she wants since she’s not here and they don’t want to wait until she gets back, if she gets back, just in case it snows before then.

 

“Promise me you would go and tell people what I’m planning?” Octavia looked Raven right in the eyes.

 

Raven nodded, “Yeah, absolutely. What is it?”

 

“I know that Indra said that we shouldn’t, but I’d really like to go out and search for Lexa and Clarke. I know they have to be alive. There is no way those two are dead.”

 

Raven could see the hope in Octavia’s eyes but Raven also understood why Indra said what she said. “Octavia, I know that you’d like to help but Indra’s right, you have no way of knowing where they may have landed, or if they landed. For all we know, they could be dead at the bottom of a lake. You’d be sending people out there to search for two people that might not even be alive. Not to say that I believe they are dead. I definitely don’t believe that but we don’t even have an area of where they could be.” She explained seeing the lights of realization flick on for Octavia. “Besides, how many people do you even have right now?” Raven asked pretty sure she already knew the answer to her own question.

 

Octavia clenched her jaw when Raven asked the question she knew she would, “Right now, I have no one.”

 

“Shocker,” Raven shrugged. “Chances are no one will volunteer. Not just because they don’t want to go against Indra’s orders but they also know that it would be useless to look when there is no specific spot to look. They could be anywhere along that river, maybe even at the end. You have no idea where they could be. I’m sorry Octavia; I know how much you want to know they are alive.” Raven wrapped an arm around Octavia and squeezed. “You and I both know how strong Clarke is, she’ll survive this and if she survives this, so will Lexa.”

 

Octavia smiled, “I know. I just feel so useless not doing anything.”

 

“So do I which brings me to why I came here in the first place.” Raven completed switched gears and went to what she came to Octavia for.

 

Octavia chuckled at Raven for switching so quick, “What is it Raven?”

 

“Well, since you have some power now, can I ask a favor of you?” Raven asked hopeful that her problem could be solved.

 

“Sure, what is it?” Octavia looked wide eyed at Raven excited that she would be able to help Raven.

 

“Can you issue an order to get Wick off of working on that object with me?” Raven clamped her two hands together and almost got down on her knees to beg. She looked around at the ground as she explained, “If the ground wasn’t so cold, I might get down on my knees. Please, he’s driving me crazy.”

 

“Raven, he’s an engineer. He should be working on that thing with you.” Octavia tried to convince Raven of the facts.

 

Raven shook her head, “No, he shouldn’t. He draws up designs and builds stuff where as I actually try to make things work properly. He’s driving me crazy!” Raven burst out. “Have you ever worked with him? His little voice is…. Ugh!”

 

“Raven, I’m sorry but I can’t help you,” Octavia tried to walk away but Raven stopped her.

 

“Come on, please. You can’t at least mention it at your next meeting? For me?” Raven looked at her with hopeful eyes.

 

Octavia clenched her jaw before finally giving in, “Fine, I’ll mention it but I’m not making any promises. Understand?” She asked giving Raven a thumbs up.

 

Raven gave a thumbs up, “Got it. Thanks.” She was off back to work on the mysterious object that fell from space.

 

“Octavia, what is it that I hear you are doing?”

 

Octavia froze in place, eyes wide, she slowly turned around to face her mentor, Indra. “What?”

 

“There have been whispers that you are trying to recruit people to look for our leaders, is this true?” Indra’s face was showing no room for emotion. It was stuck in place.  

 

Octavia swallowed nervously and instead of crumbling in fear from the look on Indra’s face, she stood up tall and responded with confidence, “Yes, I am. I know that you think that it’s best to not try and find them but I don’t think that is what’s best. Our people are supposed to be melding together.” She waited for a second for anger to ensue but nothing came so she continued. “Your people are used to losing their family, the sky people aren’t. We’re about finding our people and saving them. If this is truly to be a unification of our two people, then both sides have to be taken into consideration.” She finally stopped her rant and stared at her mentor.

 

“Are you done?” Indra’s words fell short as she stared down at her second.

 

Octavia didn’t speak; she just nodded fearing the worst would come in the next moment or too.

 

“Good. Octavia, you make a valid point. As much as I would like to follow our old ways, you are right. We need to start thinking as a group. The sky people have proven their worth and so have you. Tomorrow, we will begin a search for our lost leaders.” Indra stated with no doubt in her voice.

 

“Indra, I have tried to get recruits, but no one will do it,” Octavia pointed out as she had failed to get someone to join her group all day long.

 

Indra let out a brief smile, “They will when I tell them to.”

 

Octavia couldn’t help but let out a smile, “You’d do that?”

 

“You have one volunteer.” A voice from behind one of the tents announced themselves.

 

Octavia looked to the person coming from around the tent, “Lincoln.”

 

“Lincoln, your job is to get our men ready for morning,” Indra commanded. She did not ask.

 

Lincoln nodded, “Yes Indra.”

 

With a swift nod, Indra walked away from the two.

 

Octavia looked back to Lincoln, “I can’t believe she changed her mind so quick.”

 

“Octavia, you showed no fear. She respects someone who truly believes in something because they believe it is the right thing to do.” Lincoln explained.

 

Octavia looked at Lincoln confused, “I’ve been suggesting that we search for Lexa and Clarke ever since they went missing. Why would she all of a sudden change her mind now?”

 

“When you suggested it at first, it was out of haste and fear. Fear that they might be dead. You weren’t thinking about the bigger picture and thus she declined you.” He could see the confusion on her face build up so he continued. “In this moment, you came to her with a plan. It wasn’t about Clarke and Lexa; it was about how your people, the sky people, always find each other. That is what was different then the last. You came to her with determination not fear. We pride ourselves on that and you proved that you are capable of doing that.” He couldn’t help but to smile from the pride he was feeling of her really fitting in with his people.  

 

Octavia was speechless and could feel her cheeks getting warm from all of the attention on her character. She did the only thing, she could think of which was lean up and kiss him.

 

He closed his eyes and leaned down to connect his lips with hers in a sweet tender kiss not filled with lust just love.

 

XXXXXXXX

 

Clarke and Lexa were enjoying their food in silence across from each other when a familiar woman plopped down in the chair at the head of the table.

 

“Wow, you guys are silent, what’s happening?” Sierra asked knowing full well what happened.

 

Clarke looked up and shrugged her shoulders not wanting to give anything away. While Lexa looked to her left and glared at Sierra.

 

“Wow, tough crowd,” Sierra sighed. “Can I just say something?”

 

Lexa swallowed the food she was chewing, “If you must.”

 

“Great.” Leaning forward so that only Clarke and Lexa would hear her, “Good move on the kiss, you had me fooled.” She took a bite of her meat and could tell from Clarke’s posture that she didn’t know that Sierra knew. “I’d been watching you guys from the moment you got here, and I didn’t believe a single word but now I understand. So good idea with the kiss, anyone who doubted your union, probably doesn’t have any doubt now. I sure don’t.” Sierra smiled before taking another big bite of her food.

Clarke looked up from her food to Lexa, “What did you tell her?” She whispered making sure no one around them heard.

 

“The truth,” Lexa admitted right away. “She knows everything Clarke.”

 

“Why didn’t you tell me that she knows everything?” Clarke asked putting her food down and staring at Lexa with concern.

 

“You did not ask,” Lexa didn’t let Clarke’s clear frustration bother her when she answered before taking another bite.

 

“What?” She placed her hands on the table, palms up in confusion. “That’s something that you should have told me the second it happened.”

 

“I think she was a little busy with your hands all over her,” Sierra added while holding back a laugh.

 

Clarke glared at her.

 

Sierra’s laugh was cut short before looking away from Clarke and leaning toward Lexa, “I can see why you like her. She’s very scary when she’s pissed.”

 

Lexa couldn’t help the smile that appeared on her lips as she looked up from her food to Clarke, “Clarke, I was going to tell you later. Sierra just beat me to it.” She clenched her jaw and glared at Sierra from the corner of her eye.

 

“Uh… you two are equally scary. You deserve each other. I’m going to leave before Lexa strangles me,” Sierra suggested as she picked up her food and left without another word.

 

“So she knows?” Clarke asked once more to confirm what she already knew.

 

Lexa nodded, “She knows.”


	16. Day 7 (Part 1)

**_DAY 7_ **

****

_~DREAM SEQUENCE~_

_“…I thought you said it kind of looked broken? It looks very broken to me.”_

_Lexa slowly opened her eyes just like the night before to see what the two strangers were doing to Clarke because from what the taller one had just said, it didn’t look too good for Clarke. She flexed her fingers on her right arm without thinking about it, realizing that moments before she couldn’t even move her hand and now she could. Whatever they did to her, clearly it worked. Upon opening her eyes, she noted that the taller one was still hunched over Clarke’s ankle while the other was across from him._

_Yuki, the taller one handed over the rod to the shorter one, “Here, how about you heal her and I’ll go look for a place to drop them off.”_

_The shorter one’s shoulders dropped in defeat and answered, “Fine, give me the rod.” He took the rod from Yuki._

_As Yuki got up to leave, Lexa quickly closed her eyes to make it look as though she was still unconscious, she could hear him walk past her to another part of this ship. She didn’t want to risk the other one knowing she was awake so she chose to keep her eyes shut and just listen. Her ears went on alert so that she could try and determine where they were without seeing it. There was a low hum emitting from all around her that she couldn’t decipher. The ground she was on was a slick metal with some kind of material on top of it but laying on it, she didn’t feel like she could slip so it must be some kind of gripper._

_In the midst of her using her other senses, she could hear Yuki ask the other something from a distance, “Hey Riku, there is a lake at the end of this river, do you think we should drop them there?”_

_Lexa’s mind was spinning, earlier they had said something about them being on a ship, now they are talking about dropping them off, and she felt so lost with all the new information. The only ships she knows about are the ones that the sky people had come down in, the drop ship, the one that had brought Clarke to her. However, they never used it once it landed so what other ship could they be talking about? Too many questions overloaded her mind knocking her back unconscious but just as she felt her being falling once more she heard one last thing._

_“Yeah, that should work.”_

_~DREAM SEQUENCE ENDED~_

Lexa shot up from the ground in a sweat, trying to catch her breath, ‘ _What are these dreams?’_ She thought to herself as she looked over at the glowing embers from a fire that burnt out hours ago. Sleeping on the ground might not have been the smartest idea for her shoulder or arm but she wanted to give Clarke some space after what had happened the day before. Not just that but she too wanted to sleep separately so that she could re-collect herself.

 

It was no secret that she cared for Clarke, maybe even loved, but she didn’t want anything to push Clarke to make a decision. So when Clarke went to sleep, Lexa waited enough time before moving outside the tent. It may not have been the smartest idea because of the impending change of weather, her shoulder and arm, but she needed this. She wanted to have this time alone because she knew that as the day awoke, she would be training Clarke and needed to have a clear mind.

 

Noticing that the darkness in the sky was dwindling as the sun was making it known behind the trees, Lexa moved back and crossed her legs, sitting tall she closed her eyes and felt the world around her. She knew it would be any moment before Clarke awoke to be trained but in this moment it was just her becoming one with the forest.

 

She could feel the damp frost covered dirt beneath her legs, a sign of the change of seasons. She could hear the wind rustling between the leaves and branches of the forest, leaving that fresh smell of morning dew on each leaf in its path. She was becoming a part of the forest once again. All of her senses heightened to notice every little thing around her from the small animal scrapping its claws on the bark of a tree to the distant sound of horses digging their hooves into the ground. Everything she was feeling in that moment, from her confusing dreams to her feelings for Clarke was pushed aside and what was left was the calm commander built to make calculated choices. Choices that she would need to make to make sure her people survive the cold winter to come.

 

Moments later, Lexa could feel another presence near her and from the smell in the air, she knew who it was, “Good morning Clarke.”

 

Clarke stopped in her tracks looking around to try to figure out how Lexa figured out it was her. When she couldn’t see anything, she moved to look at the front of Lexa, noticing that her eyes were shut, Clarke asked, “How did you know it was me?”

 

“Whether you choose to admit it or not Clarke, you have a distinct way you walk and even a certain smell.” She opened her eyes focusing right on Clarke in front of her, “Are you ready to train today?”

 

Clarke fell back onto her butt startled by the quick look from Lexa, “Uh… Yeah, I’m ready,” she stuttered as she rubbed her sore butt from the hard fall.

 

Lexa smiled as she got up onto her feet, “Are you sure about that?” She walked over to Clarke and put out her good arm to help Clarke up.

 

Once Clarke was on her feet, she looked right at Lexa, “I am ready. I’m not sure what today will entail but I’m ready for whatever you want to teach me.”

 

“Then let us be off,” Lexa walked away from Clarke.

 

Clarke stood for a second before following Lexa to wherever they were going.

 

XXXXXXXXX

 

About an hour later after they had eaten their morning meal, and let it settle, Clarke and Lexa were in the training field, off to the side of the rest of the training going on. Eyes were on them briefly as they made their way in. Most of those eyes were on the commander because they hadn’t seen her in their village in a very long time. A few watched Clarke as they had heard that she defeated Mount Weather.

 

Clarke couldn’t stop from looking at the people staring at her and even when they looked away, she could still feel eyes on her.

 

“Clarke,” Lexa tried to get a response from the blonde. She could see that wasn’t working so she placed her good hand on Clarke’s shoulder to get her to look at her. Finally blue eyes connected with green ones. “You cannot let the others deter your focus from the task at hand. If you cannot be in the moment-”

 

“Then I could die. I know. Morad said that yesterday.” Clarke added feeling frustrated that so many people thought she was going to die in the challenge.

 

“Clarke, it is not just that you could die,” Lexa could tell she had caught Clarke’s attention from the look in her blue orbs. She looked curious yet confused. “If you lose focus, then Cyrus could make you suffer before killing you.” Lexa held back her emotion from this moment by looking down at the ground. She wanted to do something, she wanted to be able to prevent Clarke from going through this altogether but she couldn’t. If she found a way to have Cyrus killed, she herself could be killed and that wasn’t an option she would be okay with.

 

Clarke could see Lexa struggling with the sudden change in emotion in the room, “Then I guess you better train me right then,” she suggested with a little smile.

 

Lexa looked up from the ground right at Clarke, “We better get started then.”

 

Clarke looked Lexa right in the eyes,” Bring it on. What do I do?”

 

“Have you ever heard of meditation?” Lexa asked Clarke and from the look on her face that told Lexa that Clarke had not. “Meditation is a way to clear the mind from all intrusion like your thoughts. I am first going to teach you how to meditate and then I will teach you the form of Tai Chi so that you might better your mind for battle.”

 

Clarke nodded, “Okay.”

 

“The best position to meditate in is to sit,” Lexa moved to sit on the cold grass and she watched Clarke do the same. “Cross your legs and keep your back straight. How you place your hands is up to you but keep them from fidgeting as you do not want any distraction,” Lexa began to explain.

 

“Okay,” Clarke eyed Lexa watching her move every muscle until she was comfortable in her position. Both of her arms were rested on each separate knee. She did wonder if this position hurt Lexa’s arm but she seemed to be fine sitting across from Clarke.

 

Lexa pulled her eyelids shut, “You want to close your eyes and focus on everything but your thoughts.”

 

Clarke closed her eyes as Lexa said to until she heard why, “But I thought we were trying not to focus on everything else?”

 

Lexa didn’t open her eyes when she responded, “Clarke, you need to be able to become one with the world. Close your eyes and feel what I say.”

 

Clarke continued to look at Lexa confused as she closed her eyes just as Lexa said.

 

“Wipe that look off your face and relax,” Lexa commanded with her eyes still shut.

 

“How? How do you know how my face looks with your eyes shut?” Clarke questioned as she relaxed.

 

“I know you, that’s how,” Lexa explained as she opened one eye briefly to make sure Clarke’s eyes were in fact shut and that she looked calmer. “Okay, part of meditating is knowing your surroundings without looking at them. This will come in handy in battle if you can judge where something is from sensing it rather than seeing it. Knowing this, can you describe to me what you feel around you?”

 

Clarke took a couple of deep breaths to really try to calm herself down before she did as Lexa told her. “Okay, well, I can feel the dampness of the grass starting to soak my pants… Um… the wind is blowing the leaves…”

 

“Anything else?” Lexa asked wanted to know just how much time it was going to take to teach Clarke.

 

“Uh… No…” She seemed very unsure of her answer. “My thoughts keep intruding on me.”

 

“Your thoughts or other senses?” Lexa could feel the tension in the air. She knew something was troubling Clarke but couldn’t pinpoint what it was. Obviously the upcoming challenge was probably bothering Clarke but it seemed like more than that. In this moment, Lexa was determined to get down to the bottom of it.

 

Clarke opened her eyes once more and stared at the unmoving commander in front of her. She didn’t want to divulge her feelings for the commander sitting across from her so she answered with, “It’s the challenge. The fear that I won’t be trained enough to win. The worry that I’ll die and leave those that love me alone. The thought that Cyrus might be right, that I do not have enough time to learn everything your people have spent their lives training on. I appreciate what you are doing for me, taking the time to train me but what if it’s not enough…” Clarke trailed off looking down at her hands.

 

Lexa finally opened her eyes again to look at Clarke. She could tell that Clarke was feeling broken. Lexa knew that feeling all too well. Without thinking about it, she decided to move from where she was sitting until she was sitting to Clarke’s right, her left knee bumping Clarke’s in the process.

 

Clarke looked over to see the commander had moved positions, “What are you doing?”

 

“I am helping you. You need someone close but not too close so I am going to be right here for you while you learn, okay?” Lexa asked staring right at Clarke.

 

Clarke didn’t know how to feel. Lexa was taking such care of her during this moment. All she could muster was a nod.

 

“Alright,” Lexa closed her eyes once more and did what she had never done before. She slipped her left hand into Clarke’s to try and calm her.

 

Clarke was surprised with the sudden affection coming from the commander but she welcomed it as she closed her eyes once more.

 

“What do you feel now Clarke?” Lexa asked feeling at home in this moment. She wasn’t able to meditate as often as she liked but this moment felt different than all the rest.

 

Clarke’s hand went limp as she let go everything and just focused on her breathing. She could feel the cool fall air move into her nostrils and back out of her mouth past her lips. In and out, she could feel the air before she noticed everything around her. The feel of Lexa’s warm hand in hers made her feel even more comfortable. Finally she spoke as she let everything around her consume her being, “I- I can feel a soft breeze touching my skin, and the dampness of the grass on my pants…”

 

“Continue,” Lexa coaxed her on as she could feel the tension she once felt here in this moment drift away into nothingness.

 

“I can hear the clinking of swords in the distance of the warriors training, and the smell of the spruce trees in the area. Sitting here in this moment, I have never felt so calm since I landed on Earth.” Clarke opened her eyes to look over at Lexa, “Thank you.”

 

Lexa knew that Clarke had to be looking at her and she was afraid to open her eyes and see the emotion in those blue orbs but she overcame that fear and opened her eyes to look at the sky leader, “You are welcome.” Wanting to switch the subject so that she didn’t do what she wanted to do, she said, “Now, let’s get up and get you focused for training with Morad later.” Lexa got up and helped Clarke get on her feet.

 

“Okay… What do I do?” Clarke asked feeling still feeling the warmth of Lexa’s hands in hers. She couldn’t help the feeling she was feeling in the pit in her stomach.

 

Lexa went on to help Clarke learn Tai Chi.

 

XXXXXXXXXX

 

Back in Camp Jaha, Octavia, Indra, Lincoln and a couple other warriors were preparing to leave in search of their lost leaders.

 

Octavia stood next to the horse that she would be riding; making sure that the saddle was adjusted to her standards. Once she was good with the adjustment, she hoisted herself up onto the horse. As she did so she noticed the other warriors doing the same.

 

Lincoln rode up next to Octavia, “We’ll find them.”

 

Octavia smiled at his gesture of hope but a part of her worried that she would never see her friend again.

 

Indra rode up next to Octavia on her own horse, “Let us be off.” She gave a swift nod to Octavia and Lincoln. They both gave a nod back.

 

As they were about to ride off, a noise could be heard in the distance. Indra put her hand out to stop Octavia, Lincoln and the other warriors from moving. She closed her eyes briefly and could hear the sounds of hooves connecting with the hard dirt beginning to freeze from the cool air of seasons changing. Indra wasn’t about to be sitting ducks so she turned and without saying a word waved her arm in a way that the other warriors understood.

 

Octavia looked around as she watched the other warriors move off to the side so that they could ambush whoever came through the hole in the woods that was used as a path to get to camp. She knew she shouldn’t speak, she also knew that Indra would have commanded her to go elsewhere if needed. So for now, she waited. In the corner of her eye she could see Indra’s hand reaching for the sword on her back so Octavia did the same. Her hand gripped onto the handle just as a bigger man came riding out of the woods.

 

He pulled the reins on his horse to get it to stop in its tracks. He had a different mask on that Octavia had never seen before. It looked to be made out of wood and grass. It looked like his entire attire was like that. He looked like if he was walking in the forest, he could drop down and blend with the ground if need be.

 

Octavia stared at him, her hand gripped on the handle of her sword as she watched the exchange between Indra and the mysterious man.

 

“What is your business here?” Indra commanded as she did not have the patience to deal with an intruder when they were off to look for the commander.

 

The man removed his mask, “I am a messenger from the Marsh people, I have come to give a message to Indra.”

 

Indra eyed the man for a moment and when she thought he was no harm, she responded with “I am Indra. What is your message?”

 

The man looked upon Indra and could see why the commander trusted such a warrior, “Would we be able to speak in private?”

 

Indra looked around at the warriors and even Octavia and Lincoln who were next to her before looking back at the man, “I do not have anything to hide from those in our presence. Speak now.” She knew of the Marsh People, her commander had often spent time there but it didn’t mean that she would trust them now. “Who does this message come from?”

 

The man didn’t think before answering, “The commander sent me.”

 

Octavia’s jaw dropped in shock. _If the commander is alive, could Clarke be as well._ She thought to herself as she looked over to Indra to see what she was going to say.

 

“The commander was lost in the rushing waters of the river we dare not to enter, how do I know this message is from her?” Indra questioned the man. In all her years, she’d never known someone to impersonate the commander but with everything that has occurred in the last few months she was starting to realize that anything could be possible.

 

“I have been the messenger for the commander for many years, even before she became the commander. For my life, I would not dare to try and convince you that a message was from someone whom it wasn’t.” He tried to convince the tree people in front of him of his motives.

 

Indra nodded, “What is your message?”

 

“The commander wanted all of you to know that she and the sky leader are alive. However, with the commander’s injuries, they are not able to ride back on horses. It may be some time before her injuries allow her to ride on a horse.” The man explained.

 

Octavia’s jaw dropped in shock. _Clarke is alive._ She thought to herself as she looked over to Indra to await her response.

 

“Come with me. We need to discuss the next course of action,” Indra turned her horse and rode it back toward the camp.    

 

It took a moment before Octavia got her horse moving due to the shock but eventually she got it moving and rode alongside Indra back into camp.

 

XXXXXXXXXXX

 

Back in the Marsh camp, Clarke could be found in the training area alone swinging her sword around trying to take what she learned from Lexa and put it into use. Her eyes were shut and she was feeling the environment around her as she felt the weight of the sword moving through the air. She could almost feel the air being cut in half by the sword.

 

As she moved around the area, she paid attention to where her feet were the difference of feeling from the stiff hard dirt to the softer feel of the green grass. From this she was able to move around in the area that was just dirt and not move onto the grass. Her senses were heightened when she could feel the presence of someone else coming closer to her. Sure, she had felt other presences moving around her but none were coming closer to her.

 

This person had to be a woman due to them not having as heavy of a step as other warriors had. The way they moved indicated this further, Clarke felt the sense that they hadn’t seen much battle in their life. Their steps weren’t ones that were meant to command fear; they were more of a freeing nature. So she knew it wasn’t Lexa coming closer to her.

 

Clarke turned her being and brought her sword up knowing that whoever was coming would be able to stop the show of strength. She heard her sword connect with a ‘ting’ just as she opened her eyes. She was met with Sierra, with her sword held up to stop Clarke’s sword from slicing her throat.

 

“Wow, you’re learning fast,” Sierra smirked at the look of determination on Clarke’s face. “You are looking more and more like one of us.”

 

Clarke lowered her sword, “Thanks, I guess.”

 

“No, do not guess Clarke. You have a real good chance at winning this challenge with what you know right now.” Sierra insisted as she put her sword back in its sheath.

 

“Do you really think so?” Clarke asked feeling a boost of confidence.

 

Sierra nodded her head, “Yes I do. However, I do think you’ll have a better chance if you actually practice with someone rather than swinging your sword around alone.” She pulled out some wooden swords from the pack she was carrying. She noticed the look on Clarke’s face, “Lexa said that if I’m going to train with you, I needed these.”

 

Clarke couldn’t help the smile that appeared on her face when Sierra mentioned that Lexa was making sure she was safe even if she wasn’t right there. “Yeah, Lexa says that I need to be as strong as possible for this challenge. Which I agree with but it would be nice to practice with the real thing, you know what I mean?”

 

Sierra smiled, “I get that but I also know how injured we get when we use actual swords to train. Trust me when I say this Clarke. You do not want to practice with the real thing when you can use these. Especially if you are training to compete in a challenge,” she looked up at Clarke with a knowing smile as she handed one of the swords over to Clarke.

 

Clarke scrunched her eyebrows and put out her hand to stop Sierra’s movements, “Wait, have you seen a challenge before?”

 

“Of course I have. It’s not as rare as you would think it is Clarke.” Sierra answered with no hesitation. “Even with the new rules laid out, challenges still occur quite often. I have lost many friends through challenges, whether there is a valid reason or not. That is why I am out here now.”

 

“Why is that?” Clarke asked feeling very curious as to why Sierra would be out here in this field with her.

 

Sierra dropped the bag into the field as she pulled out the last sword for herself, “I am out here because Lexa and I have been friends since we were very young and I want to make sure she gets what she deserves.” She moved across from Clarke and held the wooden sword out to indicate to Clarke that she better do the same.

 

Clarke did as she watched and moved to get ready for an attack from Sierra. She was quite confident that she could defend herself but was still wary that she might lose. “What do you mean by that?” Clarke asked as she was able to keep Sierra’s sword away from her.

 

“I know you care about her Clarke, yet you choose not to tell her, why?” Sierra didn’t waste time with small talk. She went right to the question she wanted to ask. The actual reason she came out there for. Sierra lunged with her sword and shockingly Clarke was able to move out of the way.

 

“It’s not as simple as that,” Clarke said as she moved out of the way of Sierra’s lunge.

 

“Sure it is, you love her and she loves you. It’s simple,” Sierra deflected Clarke’s wooden blade.

 

“I know she loves me,” Clarke answered under her breath thinking that Sierra wouldn’t be able to hear what she said.

 

Sierra froze in place, “Wait…” She put up her hand to stop for a moment. “How do you know she is in love with you? From the look on your face, you aren’t kind of sure because of the way she stares at you. You sound like you know for sure. As though she told you directly but there is no way she would have told you without her knowing how you feel first.”

 

Clarke looked down at the ground unsure of how to admit what had happened in the caves before they came here.

 

“Clarke, you can tell me. I won’t tell Lexa, you have my word,” Sierra tried to coax Clarke into telling her what she meant.

 

Clarke looked up at Sierra and could see the sincerity in her eyes, “While Lexa and I were in the cave by the lake, Lexa hallucinated Costia. She thought I was Costia.”

 

“Wait what?” Sierra stood there completely flabbergasted. In all her years, she had never seen anyone as strong as Lexa let something like that happen to them.

 

“She spoke to me like I was Costia and during that period, she admitted to ‘Costia,’” she used air quotations with her fingers to indicate that it was in Lexa’s mind, “that her heart belonged to me, Clarke,” Clarke admitted as she could feel her eyes filling with tears from the thought that Lexa may go through the same thing once again with her.

 

Sierra was lost for a moment. She couldn’t believe what she was hearing. Even before Costia, Lexa had been a very private person when it came to her feelings. It was a little surprising that she admitted how she felt in that moment.

 

“If you’re wondering, Lexa doesn’t know I know,” Clarke admitted as she could read the look of confusion on Sierra’s face.

 

“You need to tell her Clarke,” Sierra pushed even more so now knowing the truth.

 

Clarke shook her head from side to side, “I can’t. It wouldn’t be fair to her.”

 

Sierra tilted her head in confusion, “Fair… You want to talk about fairness.” Anger was beginning to take over Sierra as she pointed off in the general direction of where the village was, “Lexa is in that village right now constantly worrying about whether or not you will live out this challenge.” Anger that Clarke would keep this from Lexa and sadness for her friend mix together, “She is in love with you! You are in love with her! She deserves to know before you fight for your life!” She lowered her arm in frustration as she awaited Clarke’s answer.

 

“You don’t think that I want to tell her how I feel.” Clarke looked Sierra right in the eyes and could see Sierra fuming in place. When no response came Clarke continued, “When Lexa decided to sacrifice herself on the edge of that cliff to save me…” Clarke swallowed some phlegm building up in the back of her throat from holding back her tears. “… I knew in that moment how I felt about her and it only increased when she told me why she told everyone here that we were a couple. But I can’t… I can’t let her go through that again if I lose.” Clarke couldn’t hold herself up anymore so she dropped down on her butt, dropping her head into her hands finally allowing herself to feel the emotions associated with the moment.

 

Sierra looked around for a moment letting the anger dissipate from her before sitting down next to Clarke, “Clarke…” She could tell she had Clarke’s attention when she lifted her head from her hands. “She is going to feel the same, if not worse than when she lost Costia, if you die during the challenge without telling her how you feel first.”

 

“I-“ Clarke tried to respond but Sierra put up her hand to stop her.

 

“Not knowing how someone felt for you is worse than knowing and watching them die. It still sucks, don’t get me wrong, but it’s better.” Sierra explained but Clarke could tell there was more to it than that. “I should know. I didn’t tell someone how I felt before they went off to war and I never saw them again. They died on the battlefield.” She let go of a breath she didn’t know she was holding in. “I spend every day wondering if he felt the same but I’ll never know because he’s gone. Clarke…” she placed a hand on Clarke’s shoulder to get her to look up at her and see how genuine she was. “I don’t want Lexa to go through what I did. She will spend her entire life wondering if you felt the same. The worst part is that I know how you feel. For me to have to tell her how you felt instead of it coming from you… Is even worse than not knowing.”      

 

Clarke could see how genuine Sierra was being in this moment. She could feel the emotions emanating from the healer next to her. “But if I die…”

 

“She will have known how you feel,” Sierra tried once again to try and convince Clarke that telling Lexa would be the right thing to do. “When you die, she will know how you felt and even though you’ll be gone, it won’t hurt as much.”

 

“Wait, when I die? You think I’m going to die now?” Clarke asked sarcastically trying to lighten the mood a little.

 

Sierra looked at Clarke shocked, “I mean… What? No… if, I meant **IF** you die.” Sierra couldn’t hold back the laugh that came out from that change in emotion. All kidding aside, Sierra looked at Clarke with determination, “Seriously though Clarke, if you die, her knowing won’t hurt as much. You need to tell her. She needs to know that you feel the same.” 

 

Clarke welcomed the change in feeling from that moment of laughter, “I hear what you’re saying Sierra. I appreciate it. I do. But… I need to figure this out for myself. I do think you’re right. If the ball was in her court and she didn’t tell me how she felt before going to war, I don’t think I’d be able to forgive her for doing that. However, I don’t want training to change because she knows.”

 

Sierra shook her head, “I see the way she looks at you. She didn’t need to say you two were companions because everyone here can see how much she cares for you. How much she loves you. If anything, how you are being trained has already been affected by her feelings for you. Knowing the truth, may just amplify the training more because she’ll have an extra reason to make sure you live.”

 

Clarke couldn’t help but really take in what Sierra was saying to her. The fact that Lexa was even the one training her in the first place should have been a sign right there of her feelings. Lexa is the commander of the twelve clans yet she took the time to train Clarke. One could say that her reasons for wanting to train the sky leader was for that reason, that she wanted to make sure Clarke was worthy enough to be the sky leader. However, Clarke knew that wasn’t the reason. It’s been clear from that kiss in the commander’s tent before the war began, that the commander was in love with Clarke. She didn’t need to hear it from hallucinating Lexa to know the truth. She may not have been ready then, but her feelings were solidified in that moment on the cliff. Sitting here and talking to Sierra put everything into perspective. How she felt for Lexa, how she knew Lexa felt for, the challenge, all of it. It was like her world was becoming clear. Like for the first time in her entire life, Clarke knew what she needed to do. She knew what was in front of her.

 

Before she realized what she was doing, Clarke was getting up from her sitting position. She wiped the tears from her eyes, picked up her sword and turned to leave Sierra.

 

“Uhh… Clarke, where are you going? I thought I was helping you train?” Sierra asked confused as Clarke just continued to walk away from her and toward the path that leads to the village. “Good talk!” Sierra yelled out before looking around at the left wooden sword on the ground. “I think that went well.” Sierra nodded before picking up the swords.

 

Clarke was on mission. That much was true. Anyone who passed her could see that. She wasn’t going to speak to anyone on her way to where she was going. Her path was leading her to one person and one person alone. Sierra helped her to see the light and she knew what she needed to do. She couldn’t help feeling more sure of what she was going to do in this moment, then right now. In the distance, Clarke could see her, in all her beauty. Right there, in the middle of a field doing Tai Chi. She could see the commander’s slow movements, she could see how calm Lexa was in this moment. There was a part of Clarke that didn’t want to disturb her, she looked so calm.

 

“Can I help you, Clarke?” Lexa asked opening her eyes and looking right at Clarke but still moving her arms and legs to keep up with the Tai Chi.

 

Clarke lifted her sword and placed it in the sheath on her back, “Yeah, there’s something that I’ve been meaning to talk to you about, something that I should have said a long time ago.”  

 

This caught Lexa’s attention and halted her movements, “What is it?”

 

Clarke swallowed nervously for the words that were about to exit her mouth were words she’d been holding onto for much too long, “I’m done thinking about it, I am completely and utterly sure that I want to be with you.”


	17. Day 7 (Part 2)

**_DAY 7 CONTINUED…_ **

 

Lexa froze in place. Her mind was racing from what Clarke had just said to her. She was starting to lose hope that Clarke would ever be ready to be with her but here the sky leader stood. In this moment, every thought, every feeling, every touch, every emotion that the commander had ever felt for Clarke was put into perspective. All those feelings she felt had a reason but what could it mean for them in the long run? Clarke was about to compete in a challenge, one that could potentially take her from the commander. Another love lost. Could it be worth it?

 

Clarke looked at Lexa waiting for some kind of a response but she got none. Lexa’s face was stuck in its resting place. There was no way that Clarke could read the look on her face. There was no shock, no surprise, no sadness, no happiness, nothing. She wanted so desperately to know what was going on in the commander’s mind but for the first time in quite a long time, Clarke couldn’t figure it out.

 

“Did you hear me?” Clarke asked barely above a whisper wanting make sure that Lexa heard her but at the same time didn’t want to disturb the commander.

 

Lost in thought, Lexa saw Clarke’s lips move but didn’t hear what she had to say. “What did you say?” Lexa asked.

 

“I asked whether you heard what I said,” Clarke said a bit louder so it was clear that she said something this time around.

 

Lexa looked away from Clarke for a brief moment, she stared over at the trees watching the wind blow the branches around before looking back at the clearly anxious blonde. “Clarke…” Her voice trailed off not knowing how to ask what she wanted to ask.

 

Clarke waited patiently for Lexa to continue. She knew that trust was already hard for the harsh commander and that she thought love was weakness so Clarke didn’t want to push her too far that Lexa shut right down.

 

Finding the confidence that she had become accustomed to feeling, she didn’t deter from her focus this time around, “Are you sure you are ready?”

 

Clarke nodded, “I’m sure.”

 

“Clarke, I want to make sure that this is really what you want. Do not make this decision because you may die in the coming challenge,” Lexa looked upon Clarke and could see the fear in her eyes about the coming challenge. She had known from the moment that Cyrus said those words that Clarke feared for her life.

 

“I’m not,” Clarke interjected before Lexa continued.

 

Lexa couldn’t help the smile appear on her lips, “I know that Sierra has spoken to you,” Lexa gauged Clarke’s response and when she saw Clarke’s face turn to confusion, Lexa continued, “Believe me Clarke, this is not the first time that Sierra has interfered in my life. You need to make this decision for you. Not some story Sierra has spun to make you decide. This is your decision and no else’s. I want you to be ready when you are sure you are. If there is even a shred of doubt…” Lexa’s voice faded out because she knew Clarke would know the meaning.

 

“I know what I-“ Clarke was cut off by Lexa continuing to speak.

 

“Living on the ground, we do not have the pleasure of waiting. Of figuring out if this person is worth our time. Once we find someone, have a connection with them, we do everything in our power to keep them. However, I know that this is not your way.” Lexa could tell that Clarke was listening intently to everything she was saying. She took a breath before really admitting what’s been inside for so long, “You…” Lexa looked down at the ground briefly with a smile before looking back up into those blue eyes of Clarke’s, “You are who I want to be with. I made that clear before we went to war with the mountain… And I will wait for you.”

 

“Lexa, stop,” finally Clarke was able to get a word in. She put up her hand to stop Lexa from speaking and to indicate that she would speak now.

 

Lexa looked upon Clarke to learn what she had to say in this moment.

 

“Did Sierra help me put things into perspective? Yes,” Lexa tried to interject when Clarke continued speaking, “…But she isn’t the reason that I am standing here right now. If I’m being honest, I didn’t want to tell you because I didn’t want you to go through what you did with Costia, with me, just in case I die in the challenge. And I know what you’re going to say.” In her best impersonation of Lexa’s voice, “You cannot think that you will die in the challenge otherwise you will.” She smiled when Lexa chuckled at the impersonation. “I know what it’s like to lose someone you truly care about and I didn’t want that for you. I care about you too much to do that.”

 

“Then why are you here right now,” Lexa asked getting a bit confused. “If you did not want to cause me pain, why come here and say this now?”

 

“I am here right now because Sierra made me realize that life is too short to not tell someone how you feel about them, especially living on the ground. We had so many rules about love on the ark but on the ground, you have to fight for your life every day and the thought that you or I could die tomorrow…” She let the meaning sink into Lexa before continuing on. “…Is reason enough to stop hiding the truth,” Clarke could see that was she was saying was lighting up in Lexa. The meaning was clear as day and Clarke could see that it was clear for Lexa as well.  

 

It was a though a lightbulb went off in Lexa’s head, “How long have you known?”

 

Clarke looked down for a second as that moment flooded her mind. All of the emotions she felt in that moment, all of it. As she looked up, tears in her eyes, she looked right into Lexa’s green orbs, “The moment I realized that Finn was in the past…” She paused to see Lexa waiting patiently for Clarke to continue. “…Was the moment you let go of my hand. I had never in my entire life known what love was until that moment. The moment that I realized I could lose you and that scared me. It scared me to know that, this could be it. I let my fear of caring for someone again take me over and I let probably the best and kindest person go.” Clarke wiped the tears from her eyes and looked down at the ground kicking her right foot into the ground. She knew she wasn’t going to make any progress with the ground being so hard from the cold air freezing it but she needed to do anything but look at Lexa. 

 

“Clarke…” Lexa barely got out in a whisper as she didn’t know what to say to that. It was clear that Clarke truly did care for her but never in a million years did Lexa think that Clarke would say this to her. She reached out and did what she thought would be the only thing to comfort the sky leader, and placed her left hand on Clarke’s right shoulder.

 

Clarke looked up from the surprising contact and looked at the hand and back to the person it was connected to.                

 

Without thinking, Lexa did something she hadn’t done in a very long time; she pulled Clarke into a hug. She wrapped her arms around Clarke as best as she could with her injured right arm. She could feel Clarke’s arms wrap around her and even from just this she could feel Clarke relax somewhat. “I am sorry that I put you through that,” Lexa admitted. “Know this Clarke; if I had known what I know now then, I would have done the same. On the ground, we do not bring others down with us in our mistakes. I was not about to let you fall with me.”

 

Clarke was the one to pull back from the hug to look Lexa in the eyes, her hands were still connected to Lexa on her sides and Lexa’s hands were still on the sides of Clarke’s arms. She could see how sincere Lexa was. It was quite clear that Lexa would do anything for her. So she decided to say it again, “I’ll say it again Lexa. I want this. I want you. It doesn’t matter if I might die in the challenge; all that matters is that you know how I feel about you.” She looked down from Lexa’s mesmerizing green eyes down to those plump lips that she could only dream about since their kiss in the commander’s tent and back up to Lexa’s eyes. She got a taste of them the day before in the village but it wasn’t the same as their kiss in Lexa’s tent.

 

Lexa could tell what Clarke was thinking and was sure that if she did it this time, there would be no pulling back. So she took a chance, she leaned in to Clarke and let her lips connect with Clarke’s. She brought her right hand up Clarke’s arm and around her neck; the pain from the movement was lost in the effect of the kiss. It didn’t matter that her arm was killing her; all that mattered was that she was able to kiss the girl of her dreams again.

 

Clarke brought up her left hand and placed it on Lexa’s right arm not thinking that this was the arm that was injured. In this moment, all Clarke could think about was the feel of Lexa’s lips on her own and for the first time in a long while she didn’t feel any guilt for letting herself be happy for once. The impending challenge went out the door, the worry of having to fight a guy like Cyrus was lost, all that mattered was the fact that Lexa knew how she felt, and that her feelings were reciprocated. The slow pace of their lips moving against each other was so intoxicating, Clarke didn’t know if she’d ever be able to pull back from the kiss. She did know she wanted more though.  

 

Lexa could sense the urgency in Clarke’s movements and decided to pull her head back with one last peck on Clarke’s lips, “Clarke, I am really enjoying where this is going but we should take things slow, do you not agree?” She couldn’t help but to lick her lips from the make-out session.

 

Clarke nodded as she pulled Lexa in for another kiss. With much resistance, she pulled back, “Yes that is probably a good idea.” Her head felt incredibly cloudy from everything that just occurred but it was a good cloudy because for the first time since she met Lexa, she felt free. Free of a burden that was no longer holding itself above her. She could put all of her focus on making sure she lives out this challenge so that she and Lexa could finally be free of all this bloodshed.  

 

They stood there in each other’s arms trying to hold onto this moment for as long as possible because they knew that as soon as they disconnect from each other that they would be forced to deal with the fact that Clarke may not be alive soon.

 

A few minutes passed of Lexa inhaling the scent of Clarke when she realized where the sun was and how they needed to be somewhere right now, “We should probably be off, Clarke.”

 

Clarke’s head was rested against Lexa’s right shoulder facing away from Lexa’s face so when the question was asked she repositioned herself and turned her head around so that she was looking at Lexa’s neck. If she leaned just a few centimeters, she could taste the golden skin that was Lexa’s but she used all of her will power and resisted, instead she asked, “Where do we need to go?” She was wracking her brain trying to figure out where she was supposed to be today. If she had training Morad would have said something the day before and she was just with Sierra, if she had something planned, she would have said something. So what could it be?

 

“I spoke to Morad today, and we agreed that you should have a practice run of the challenge,” Lexa explained feeling more anxious than she did this morning about the impending challenge.

 

This was enough for Clarke to pull her head off of Lexa’s shoulder to look into those green orbs she would be looking into more often now, “Practice run?” She asked confused before worry overtook her, “Is Cyrus here?”

 

Lexa shook her head holding onto Clarke when she tried to pull free from her panic, “No, he is not here. You will only have to face him once. However, we do think that you should at least test your skills against a warrior that is of similar build so that we might determine where training is needed.”

 

Clarke relaxed once more and leaned her head back against Lexa’s shoulder once she realized that Lexa wasn’t going to let anything happen to her, “Is that really necessary?”

 

“Yes, it is. Even I practice my skills from time to time. You should know. I have seen you watch me train,” Lexa smiled as she didn’t need to look at Clarke to know she was embarrassed.

 

Red tinted Clarke’s cheeks and she knew that there was no need in trying to get out of it so she said the next best thing, “I liked to watch the master train.”

 

Lexa continued to smile, “I am sure that is the only reason.”

 

“It is,” Clarke wasn’t backing down in her efforts to keep the real reason to herself. The fact was, she enjoyed watching Lexa get all sweaty while showing her strength. Proving that strength does not come from how big you are, but from how you maneuver in a battle. Lexa wasn’t the biggest person. In fact most of her warriors towered her in size but that didn’t stop her and that was something that Clarke really looked up to.

 

“Clarke, if we do not leave soon, we will be late for your trial,” Lexa wanted to stay here just as much as Clarke but she also knew that training Clarke was more important than there new status.

 

“Okay, you’re probably right,” Clarke finally gave in and pulled completely apart from Lexa. However, she didn’t want to completely disconnect so she put her left hand out to see if Lexa would see where she was going with this.

 

Lexa put out her right hand when pain overtook her. The movement during the kiss and then sitting still finally came to light now. She cringed in pain.

 

Before Lexa could say anything Clarke was moving to the other side, “Sorry, I forgot your right arm is your bad arm.” She put out her right hand.

 

Lexa smiled and gladly took Clarke’s left hand, lacing their fingers together. She didn’t want to admit that she was feeling weak because of her hand so she left it at that.

 

They walked out of the field and back toward the training area that Clarke was just in. There was an added bounce in Clarke’s step that she didn’t realize was there but it definitely may have had something to do with the lifted weight on her shoulders.

 

Lexa watched Clarke as they walked toward the training area and couldn’t help but feel pride that she finally got what she wanted.

 

XXXXXXXXXXX

 

“Octavia, get Raven and bring her to this meeting,” Indra ordered as she found Abby and asked her to join in this meeting. She walked into the ark, the small enclosed walls were still new to Indra but they were slowly becoming normal for her as it was nice not to feel the outside air at all in this structure.

 

Abby walked in moments later with Kane following her in noticing the unfamiliar man next to Indra, “Who is this?”

 

“Let’s wait for Octavia and Raven and then I will introduce the man next to me,” Indra indicated as she looked upon the chancellor and Kane.

 

Octavia walked over to where Raven and Wick were working. It didn’t look like they were doing much working though as it looked like the two were fighting. Octavia jumped in between the two as Raven lunged for Wick, “Raven, what’s going on?”

 

Raven clenched her jaw in frustration, “Octavia, you got to get Wick out of my workspace, he is driving me crazy!”

 

Wick stood in the background and smiled.

 

“Forget Wick for a second, I need you for a moment,” Octavia suggested calmly as she could see the frustration written on her face.

 

Raven averted her gaze from Wick standing behind Octavia and put her attention on Octavia, “What is it?”

 

“Indra requests you in a meeting we’re having right now,” Octavia explained.

 

“Why would she need me?” Raven asked confused as to why she would be pulled from trying to figure out what this object is to a meeting that she was never invited to.

 

Octavia pulled Raven away from anyone and whispered, “A man just arrived from another clan.”

 

Raven looked at Octavia confused, “So?”

 

“He said that Clarke and Lexa are alive,” She whispered as she looked around making sure that Raven only heard.

 

Raven’s eyes lit up, “What? They’re alive.”

 

Octavia nodded, “Now come on. I don’t know what Indra has planned but she needs you in this meeting.”

 

Raven followed Octavia into the ark toward the meeting.

 

“Ah, the last have finally arrived.” Indra announced as Octavia and Raven walked into the room that housed the messenger, Indra, Abby, and Kane. “I have called this meeting because we need to discuss how we are going to deal with what the messenger has told us.”

 

Abby stepped up, “What are you talking about?”

 

Indra gave a swift nod, “Yes, this is Shay from the Marsh Clan; he brought a message from the commander.”

 

Abby’s eyes lit up at the mention of Lexa, “What about Clarke?”

 

Shay decided now was the time to speak, “She is alive and well.”

 

Abby could feel tears coming on she was so happy but she pushed them aside so that she could focus on the meeting that Indra had requested. “So when are they coming back?”

 

Indra nodded to Shay to explain.

 

“The sky leader Clarke can travel, it is the commander that is preventing them from travelling back to this camp.” Shay explained as he looked around at all the people in the room.

 

“What happened to Le-the commander?” Abby caught herself as she realized she was in the presence of high ranking grounders and in their culture Lexa is their commander and shouldn’t be named by her real name.

 

“From what our healer was able to tell me, the commander had not only dislocated her shoulder but also broke her wrist. I was told that their journey from the end of the river to our village was so painful that she needed to walk some of it. Even though she’ll never admit it, riding a horse is out of the question,” Shay went into more detail from what he had heard from other warriors that had come back with the two leaders and from what Sierra had explained to him.

 

Indra looked to Abby for some answers on the injury in question.

 

Abby could tell what Indra was thinking, “It makes sense that she can’t ride a horse. The vibration from the constant bouncing from riding a horse would not be good for that injury. What if they walked?”

 

Indra shook her head, “That is out of the question. Not only would that be at least a three day trek but there are many dangers in the woods that one should never have to deal with without several warriors.”

 

Finally Raven understood why she was in this meeting. She moved from the wall toward the table and asked, “What if I converted the cart used to carry stuff to carry a person?”

 

Indra looked to Raven, “Explain.”

 

“If I added extra padding to the cart, enough so that the commander didn’t feel the impact of the bumps, then she could come back that way.” Raven suggested as ideas flooded her mind. In this moment, she was glad that Octavia had pulled her away from Wick because for once she felt like her ideas were being considered. Unlike Wick who was determined to make her life a living hell.

 

“Where are you going to find this padding?” Indra asked.

 

Raven was at a loss for a moment when Kane jumped in, “Mount Weather. Those that have been living there have been bringing back their belongings. I’m sure there is extra padding in there and if not, you could always take apart the seats that are scattered within this ark.”

 

Raven’s eyes lit up and just looked at Indra nodding, “I could do that.”

 

“How much time do you need?” Indra asked hoping that it wouldn’t be long so that they could get on their way to find their leaders.

 

“Once I figure out how I want it to look, it should only take a few hours, provided I have enough padding.” Raven did the math in her head and determined that that was what it would take.

 

“I would like to leave as soon as possible. If you can get all the materials on the cart, could you work enroute?” Indra asked wanting to waste no time to get the commander back. She knew as well as anyone else that the seasons were changing quickly and it would soon be winter.

 

Raven bounced her head side to side, “Well… maybe? If not, I could create it when we get there.”

 

“I can live with that,” Indra nodded. “Shay, you will accompany us back to your village.”

 

He nodded, “Yes Indra.” With that he was off to ready the horses.

 

“What about the rest of the people here? Should they be made aware that their leaders are okay,” Kane suggested.

 

Indra nodded, “Yes, let us go out and tell them now.” She walked past the sky people and made her way outside the ark. “Everyone!” All grounders turned and some of the sky people.

 

Octavia came out next to Indra, “TRIKRU AND SKY PEOPLE ALIKE, WE HAVE AN ANNOUNCEMENT!” She yelled and this time everyone in the area came closer to all of them.

 

Indra turned to Octavia to smirk for having such power to get them all to move. It made her decision to make Octavia the interim commander even sounder. “We have news about our two leaders.”

 

Cyrus moved through the crowd to the front pushing people out of his way to do so because he knew that this could mean that he’ll still have a chance to kill the sky leader.

 

“Our commander and the sky leader are alive,” Indra announced feeling pride knowing that she was able to give such good news to their people.

 

The crowd erupted in cheers and chanting, “Heda, Heda, Heda….”

 

Cyrus turned around and yelled, “QUIET!” Once the crowd was silent, he spoke up, “Shall I come with your party to kill the sky leader there?” He asked smugly feeling confident in his abilities to beat the sky leader.

 

Indra stepped down from her podium and walked right up to Cyrus, “You have done enough! You have challenged the sky leader with wrongful doing; you will not go there and dishonor her by not allowing her time to ready herself for your challenge. Do you understand?” She stated more so than asked because there was no room for saying no in this situation.

 

Cyrus tried to stand his ground but the look that Indra was giving him was one he did not want to challenge so he did what any other person would do, which is nod, “Yes, Indra.”

 

“Good, if you even think of following us there, I will make sure that you never make it back to camp, do we understand each other?” Indra challenged the bigger man in front of her.

 

He crossed his arms, “You would not dare. That would mean that by our laws, you would be killed for killing the challenger.”

 

Indra smirked, “Ha, you really think that I would be dumb enough to kill you myself? As much as I would enjoy that, I would make sure that it was a natural death. There are many dangers in these woods, and even though we are all trained for them, no one would notice if you did not make it back to camp alive.” She stared him down until she could see the fear in his eyes. “I suggest you spend this time preparing your life for death.” She turned to leave when he spoke again.

 

“You mean her death,” Cyrus watched Indra freeze and turn around slowly.

 

“As I said before Cyrus, if Clarke loses which I doubt she will, I will kill you myself,” Indra made sure he wasn’t going to speak again when she turned to go toward the stables.

 

Cyrus turned to leave in a huff.

 

The crowd didn’t know what to do after that so a bunch of them decided to start planning something for when the leaders return.

 

Abby turned to Kane, Octavia and Raven, “Raven, you get all the tools you need for the journey. Octavia and Kane, you too look for as much padding as you can for Raven’s idea. Whether that be the seats that are throughout this station or the materials that some have brought back from Mount Weather.”

 

They all nod in agreement and turn to leave her standing there. _Clarke is alive,_ Abby thought before she walked toward where Wick and Monty were working to discuss the fact that Raven wouldn’t be helping them for a few days.  

 

XXXXXXXXXXXX

 

Sierra noticed them walking toward the group first, and decided to use the distraction of Morad talking to the people in the crowd to run toward Lexa and Clarke. “Sooooooo….” She asked excited that her plan may have worked.

 

“Sooo…. What, Sierra?” Lexa asked completely ignoring that she knew why Sierra was so excited. It wasn’t like she was hiding the fact that she was still holding Clarke’s hand so it’s not like she was hiding their relationship.

 

Sierra looked down at the two hands connected, “You did it didn’t you?” She looked right at Clarke.

 

Clarke looked over to Lexa for a moment and could tell that Lexa wanted to get payback on Sierra but when Clarke looked back at an excited Sierra, she couldn’t hold it in. She nodded, “Yeah, I did.”

 

Lexa looked away briefly in annoyance that Clarke would team up with Sierra.

 

Sierra couldn’t contain her excitement as she jumped up and down before pulling the both of them into a hug. “Ahhh… I’m so excited.”

 

“Sierra, let go of me,” Lexa barely got out between breaths.

 

Sierra pulled back, “Oh sorry.”

 

“Thank you,” Lexa looked from Sierra over to Clarke who was looking at the numerous people around the circle that she had been training at lately. “Come on Clarke, you will be fine.”

 

Clarke finally pulled her eyes from the grounders back to Lexa, “I know you’re right, but I can’t help but to worry a little.”

 

“Understandably, you’ve never fought one of us in a fair fight before. If I was you, I’d be a little nervous-“

 

“Sierra!” Lexa cut her friend short. “What are you doing? We are supposed to be encouraging Clarke, not making her more nervous. What is wrong with you?”  

 

“I just thought that maybe-“

 

“She’s right.” Both Lexa and Sierra turned to Clarke’s voice. Clarke looked back at the warriors before looking back at the fighting friends, “I just.. I mean, I would rather know what I’m up against rather than not. So why don’t we get this over with, shall we?” Clarke let go of Lexa’s hand and walked toward the circle of Morad and bigger warriors.

 

Lexa stood there with pride as Sierra spoke up, “Well I’d say that was a point for Clarke. What do you think?”  

 

Lexa turned to her friend, “Really? Now, of all times you chose to say that.” She shook her head she walked away from Sierra.

 

“What? It’s true,” Sierra pointed out as she followed Lexa and Clarke toward the fight circle.

 

As Lexa and Sierra walked up behind Clarke and stood next to her, Morad was explaining what was going to be happening here this evening.

 

“So Clarke, as the commander and I have decided, we believe that your skills should be tested. As per the commander, she thinks that these warriors here are of similar build to the one who has challenged you. We want you to fight them as though you are in the challenge right now so that we can see where your weaknesses are and improve on them. Does that make sense?” Morad asked sensing Clarke’s hesitation with this whole situation.

 

Clarke didn’t know what to do but to nod until she found her voice when a question came to mind, “Uh… What about the injuries? How realistic is this going to be?”

 

This was when Lexa decided to step in, “Clarke, you will be fighting as though your life is on the line. However, we will not be using actual weapons. We will be using the training wooden swords but if either of you get the other in a situation that would be a death blow, the fight is over. Does that make sense?”

 

Clarke nodded, “Yes, it does.”

 

Morad took this opportunity to add, “Keep in mind that you will still be able to use your fists though. The commander and I have decided that while slices from a sword can take time to recover from, bruises shouldn’t take as much time. If you lose to my warriors, we will re-evaluate where your weaknesses are and build on those.” Morad looked to the bigger men standing next to him, “These are the warriors you will be fighting today. First will be Warrick then Clyde and if you’re still up for it Aleksy.”

 

The men looked right at her and tried to send fear into her mind but Clarke stood her ground. She had been on the ground long enough to know that fear was the cause of so much death but if she was able to hold onto her strength she would be able to endure. “I’m ready.”

 

Morad nodded, “Good, then leave every weapon on you on this table and select from the wooden weapons to be used in this fight.”

 

Clarke walked up to the table with Warrick and did as she was told. She took the sword attached to her back off and pulled the dagger from her belt off as well. She watched as he pulled weapons out of all kinds of places and placed them on the table. Then she reached for a wooden sword and a dagger. It wasn’t a very long dagger but it had a big of a curve to it and Clarke felt drawn to it so she chose it. Warrick picked up a similar sword and one of the smaller daggers.

 

Walking back into the circle, Clarke put the dagger in her belt to be used if she lost her sword and then she waited to hear the rules.

 

Lexa and Sierra stood at the edge of the circle around with the rest of the grounders that had come to watch the Sky Leader try to win against one of their own.

 

Morad walked into the middle of the battleground, “The rules are as such. The goal is to either get your opponent in a situation that if an actual sword was used, they would be dead. Knock them out or beat them to surrender. Do you understand?” He looked to Clarke who nodded, and then over to Warrick who also nodded. He moved back to where the table was as some grounders had moved it a distance from the circle to not temp the two warriors to try and grab their weapons, “The fight will begin on a count of three.” He looked between the two, “One, two… three, fight.”

  

Learning from different people, Clarke had to try and take everything she learned and try to use it all right now. For what seemed like minutes, she took a moment to close her eyes and feel the air around her, really take in what Lexa had taught her earlier that day. Feeling the earth below her feet to the wind blowing through her hair to the distinct scent of torches that were being lit as darkness slowly took over the grounds.

 

Warrick took advantage of this situation and decided that he’d end this battle quickly by swinging his sword toward Clarke’s neck. He knew he’d have to stop right before as that would be a death blow but he wasn’t going to slow down until he got there.

 

She unexpectedly ducked before the sword could reach its destination. As she stood back up she opened her eyes with a new look of determination that Morad, let alone Lexa had ever seen before.

 

Warrick looked around shocked that a sky person was able to do even that.

 

Without much hesitation, she swung her sword at him with both hands and he was able to defend her lunge and lash back at her. She easily defended his attack and with what she had learned from watching short Lexa go up against these bigger guys, she used his strength against him and just as he had thought he’d won by pushing her further and further back, she moved out of the way and he slammed his hands into the ground. Turning over quickly, he got back up on his feet and got down to a lower position so that didn’t happen again. He watched her bounce from foot to foot trying to stay moving and when he was sure she wasn’t looking completely at him, he made his move using his sword to trip her legs and cause her to fall back on the ground.

 

She hit the ground in a huff on her back, it felt like the wind had been knocked right out of her and even though she felt a little woozy, her senses were still heightened and she watched his sword come right to her. She rolled out of the way and heard his sword connect with the ground. Getting up on her feet, she watched him try to pull the sword from the ground but couldn’t. So he left it there and pulled his dagger from his belt.

 

Warrick was able to use his strength against Clarke when she came at him with the sword, he could tell that she was feeling cocky with her sword against his dagger. When she lunged at him with her sword, he was able to swipe it down and then not only knock the sword from Clarke’s hands but also land a blow to her cheek.

 

Clarke spun around and hit the ground once again. She could taste iron from the blood in her mouth, she lifted her hand to her mouth and could feel the blood dripping from her mouth. Just as she was going to get up, she felt his presence behind her as he wrapped an arm around her with the dagger to her throat.

 

“Warrick is the winner,” Morad announced from the edge of the circle. Warrick let go on Clarke as Morad continued to speak, “That is all for today, we will make some necessary changes and be back-“

 

“No.”

 

Morad stopped in his words and looked to Clarke as she slowly rolled onto her back and got up on her feet. He could see the blood dripping from her mouth but he could also see a determination in her that he’d rarely seen, even from his own warriors.

 

“I want to go again,” Clarke used the sleeve of her shirt to wipe the blood away.

 

Morad looked upon Clarke, “Are you sure?”

 

“Yes,” Clarke nodded as she looked over to Lexa who smiled with pride.

 

Pride that the woman Lexa had chosen was as strong as she had thought she was.

 

Clarke leaned over to pick up her sword. “You said that you wanted to see where my strengths and weaknesses were so that I can improve. Well, I think I know where I went wrong. I want to see if I can correct for them. If I’m wrong, then we can quit and you can train me more.”

 

Morad looked to the commander and she just gave a swift nod. “Alright, Clyde, it’s your turn.”

 

Clyde went over and traded his weapons for wooden ones just as Warrick did before.

 

Clarke stood her ground, she was still very in tune with her senses as she moved around the circle with him wanting to calculate her next move instead of randomly lunging and hoping it went well. She watched as he did the same, both of them trying to figure out who would make the first move. Clarke decided to make the first move, by swinging her sword toward him, easy enough Clyde defended it. It was child’s play for him.

 

She watched him taunt her by making a come to me motion with his free hand, she only smiled in response waiting for him to make his move. She made a move here and there, Clyde defending each one easy enough. Finally she could tell that he was getting tired of this game. He lunged at her and as he did she moved to the side just as he lunged. As she moved she tried something she had done in a dream days before, she connected the bottom of her boat to his hand, the very hand holding the sword, and just like in her dream, he dropped the sword.

 

He looked up at her surprised she was even capable of that. The crowd erupted in favor of Clarke. He pulled the dagger from his belt as he rolled out of the way of her sword. She didn’t follow his movements as she was afraid he’d try what Warrick did to her so she waited for him to get up again.

 

He got up and stretched his hand from the blow before looking at her with anger.

 

Clarke could sense his anger and from his anger, she gained a new strength because she was able to get the upper hand on yet another grounder. She couldn’t help but feel like she had more of a chance now to beat Cyrus.

 

Clyde put his hands up with his dagger and made a move toward Clarke, she was able to deflect his movement but just like with Warrick, he was able to use the movement to get Clarke’s sword out of her hands. She made a mental note to ask Morad about how to prevent this from occurring. However unlike with Warrick, Clarke was able to move out of the way of his punch and take her own shot to his jaw. He stumbled back from the impact and had to move his jaw from side to side to make sure it was still connected.

 

She pulled the dagger from her belt and moved around the circle to try and keep from being knocked down again. This time, she kept her feet closer to the ground, so not to be knocked down. She held her dagger with the blade sticking out past her pinky instead of up past her thumb like he was holding it.

 

He threw a punch, she put up her right hand to block his punch and could feel the force from it as she swore that some bones had broken but she didn’t notice as she took this distraction as a way to lunge her dagger to his throat. He froze in place unsure of what just happened.

 

Everyone froze, they’d just seen it happen but they weren’t sure it actually happened. After a second, Sierra did what no one seemed to be able to do, “Clarke is the winner!” She shouted with glee.

 

Clarke pulled the dagger from his throat as she realized that she had just won and as she did she could feel the pain in her right hand. “Ouch…” She looked at her right hand. Trying to clench her right hand into a fist, she quickly realized that was not going to happen.

 

Lexa walked up to Clarke, “Are you alright Clarke?”

 

Clarke was moving her fingers and could see them all moving but it hurt like you wouldn’t believe, “I think I broke my hand. Ahh…”  

 

Sierra walked over to the conversation, “Let me see.” She took Clarke’s hand in her own and felt the palm of her hand to look for any abnormalities. Clarke was cringing the whole time. “Well, I don’t think there are any broken bones but you’ve definitely bruised it. Maybe next time you shouldn’t use your hand as a blocking tool.”

 

“Ha ha, I thought it would work. Obviously not,” Clarke cringed as Sierra let go of her hand.

 

“On the contrary Clarke,” Morad interjected as he overheard the conversation, “You may have injured your hand in the process but in the end you did win against one my warriors. You should be proud. Even though I had helped in the training, I was not sure if you would have any chance but you have proven me wrong.” He smiled knowing that he helped shape the warrior leader in front of him. “I see now, what it is that Lexa sees in you.” He patted her on the back a little harder than he meant.

 

It was enough to make Clarke jump forward a little, not to mention she was still feeling a little out of it from her fall in the first fight. “Thank you Mo.” She smiled trying to look grateful even though she was in pain.

 

“Okay, let us get you bandaged up and then you can celebrate,” Sierra suggested and Clarke nodded.

 

Lexa followed Clarke and Sierra out of the crowd toward her tent. As they approached the tent, Sierra turned around to face the two of them.

 

“Why have you stopped Sierra?” Lexa asked confused.

 

“Clarke doesn’t need to be bandaged up, you know that right Clarke?” She watched as Clarke nodded in agreement. “I just figured that you two wanted to get away from that craziness out there. What Clarke needs is rest for her hand. Tomorrow will be another day.”

 

Clarke nodded, “Yes, rest would be good. My hand is killing me. I’m just lucky it’s not my dominant hand.”

 

Sierra looked at Clarke curiously, “Why is that a good thing? You use your hands to fight, if one is injured, it will hinder your chances to win. No?”

 

Clarke weighed her options with what Sierra had said before she answered, “Yes and no. In a way, yes, I need both hands to fight but I use my left hand to hold a sword. But hey, with Lexa’s injuries we aren’t going to be back in our camp for a while so I have some time for my hand to heal and get back into fighting.”

 

Lexa nodded in agreement, “Shall we go and eat before going back to our tent?”

 

“Yeah, let’s do that,” Clarke nodded before she froze. “Actually, if we go over there, they will expect me to celebrate; I’m not really in the mood to celebrate with my hand.”

 

“Clarke, I will get us some food, you go to the tent and rest,” Lexa suggested.

 

“Are you sure?” Clarke asked noticing just how dark it was as the flames of the nearby torch lit up Lexa’s face.

 

Lexa gave one swift nod, “Yes. Go. I will be fine.”

 

Clarke took that has her sign to leave so she turned to walk back toward their tent. At first she took a wrong turn and was about to be corrected by the two behind her before she turned in the right direction.

 

“So, you two…” Sierra trailed off as they watched Clarke disappear in the darkness.

 

“Yeah…” Lexa got lost in watching her love walk away before she remembered that she was irritated at Sierra. “What was your story this time? Your son was killed by a creature of the forest?” She turned to look at Sierra fully. “Or maybe it was the one about your parents, what do you always say?” Lexa thought for a moment before it came to her, “Oh yes,” In her best voice of Sierra, “They were always ones to never show you love so when it came to them dying you always regretted not telling them how you feel. Or was it a new story this time?”

 

“Ha ha ha, I do not make up stories.” Sierra tried to defend but she could tell Lexa could see right through her lie.

 

“Sierra, I have known you my entire life, I think I would have known if you had a son and your parents were the nicest people this village has ever seen. I know you, you try to help the people around me see the truth but for once, why can you not just leave it alone?” Lexa asked wanting to know so desperately why Sierra was determined to meddle in her love life.

 

Sierra thought for a long time why it was that she did what she did. Why it was her mission in life to make sure Lexa was happy. So she decided that for once in her life, she wouldn’t shy away from the truth, “Lexa, I saw something in you two that reminded me of myself, so I tried to push you two closer. I tried to get Clarke to see the truth.”

 

“Yes, by telling a story. A fake story because that is what you do. You do not think about how it may affect other people. You just think about yourself. Even if you helped me today, you still think about yourself in the process. I care about you Sierra but doing this, I warned you last time…” Lexa trailed off feeling like she did the last time Sierra meddled in her life.

 

“Lexa, I didn’t tell a story this time,” Sierra admitted and as she did she watched Lexa look back at her. “I told you last time, that I wouldn’t meddle in your life again. Not after what happened to Costia but I couldn’t just let Clarke continue to do what I did. You’re right, I tell stories to get what I want but I didn’t do it this time.”

 

Lexa could see what Sierra was referring to, “You told her about…”

 

Sierra nodded, “Yes.”

 

“Sierra…” Lexa was at a loss of words. She didn’t know what to say because she knew what had happened to the love of Sierra’s life. “I am sorry Sierra.”

 

“You didn’t know and I get why you would jump to conclusions. I would have too,” Sierra didn’t like how their conversation had turned so sad so she tried to put on a smile. “I think that’s enough about me, you need to go get some food for your girl.”

 

Lexa smiled at Sierra’s attempt at changing subjects, “I will try not to jump to conclusions next time.”

 

“You do that, now go,” Sierra nudged Lexa to get moving.

 

“I am going,” Lexa turned to leave and left Sierra standing at her tent.

 

XXXXXXXXXXXX

 

By the time Lexa had gotten food and walked into their tent, she was met with Clarke asleep on the bed. Lexa couldn’t help but to smile at the sight in front of her. Instead of eating in the tent, she went outside and built a fire to eat next to it instead of inside and potentially disturbing Clarke.

 

A few moments later, Lexa heard someone move the cloth from the opening of the tent they called theirs, “What are you doing out here?” A familiar voice asked groggily.

 

Lexa was lying on her left side with her left elbow propped under her holding her up, her hands intertwined in front of her; she turned her head from staring at the fire to look over at the voice. “What are you doing up, Clarke?” She asked as she sat up from her lying position and sat on her butt with her legs stretched out past the left side of the fire with her arms behind her holding her up from lying back.

 

Clarke sat down to the right of Lexa, “I was waiting for you. What took you so long?”

 

“I did not wish to disturb you,” Lexa explained her reasoning’s for not waking up the sleeping beauty.

 

Clarke’s stomach gave out a not so loud growl which caused Clarke to chuckle, “You do realize that I had two practice runs today right?” Lexa nodded. “So, one would gather that that person would be hungry, yes?”

 

Lexa nodded as she handed over the plate she had picked up for Clarke, “Here, it may be a little cold now but it has been near the fire so it may not be too bad. I will know for next time to wake you.”

 

“Good,” Clarke elbowed playfully Lexa as she took a bite from her food.

 

Lexa couldn’t help but to notice the sparkle in Clarke’s eyes from the flames of the fire. Lifting up her right hand, she brushed a stray strand of blonde hair from Clarke’s face, “You really are beautiful.”

 

Clarke smiled at the compliment, “You’re not so bad yourself.” She wanted to see what kind of reaction she’d get from the commander from such a joking comment. When she got none, Clarke moved the conversation on, “So, I guess I’ll be seeing another side to the, oh so secretive, commander?”

 

Lexa smiled as she pulled her gaze from Clarke back to the flames, “Clarke, just because you and I are…” Lexa couldn’t find the right word at first. “Closer… Do not think that you will learn all of my secrets just like that.”

 

“Lexa, it’s okay. I wasn’t trying to imply that you need to tell me everything now. That’s what dating is for,” Clarke pointed out forgetting that was a term not used often in grounder culture.

 

“There is that word again. Dating, is that what we are now?” Lexa asked wanting to make sure she had the term correct.

 

Clarke weighed the options in her head before answering, “I guess. We haven’t been on a date but I suppose you could say that. Sure.”

 

“We must go on one of these dates then,” Lexa announced almost as a command.

 

“Is that you asking me or commanding me?” Clarke asked noticing the tone in Lexa’s voice.

 

Lexa was at a loss for words, she’d not often had someone go against a direct order before.

 

“Lexa, relax. I’m only kidding.” She put out her hand in defense before an idea popped in her mind, “How about we plan something for when all of this challenge drama is over?” Clarke asked hopeful.    

 

Lexa noticed a double meaning in that question whether Clarke noticed it or not, “What changed?”

 

Now Clarke was confused, “What? What are you talking about?”

 

“Ever since the training began, you did everything in your power to not think of past the challenge for fear that you would not survive. You want to plan something for after the challenge, what changed?” Lexa explained looking at Clarke in a whole new light.

 

“Today changed everything. You, deciding that I needed to compete against other warriors was the best idea for me. I feel so much more confident, than I did this morning.” She placed the empty plate on the ground and really looked over at Lexa. “You did that. You gave me the confidence that I have the ability to do it, to actually win against Cyrus. So yes, I want to plan for afterward because I believe that we will be able to build on what we have after the challenge,” Clarke turned to face Lexa, her right leg pulling to herself as though she was going to cross her legs with the left one stretched out behind Lexa. She pulled herself right close to Lexa with fire in her eyes.

 

“Yes, afterward…” Lexa trailed off having one goal and one goal only. The heat from the fire combined with the heat she was feeling from Clarke being so close. Lexa leaned over a little lifting up her left hand to wrap her fingers around Clarke’s neck, pulling her closer to the commander.

 

If it was possible, Clarke couldn’t help but to scoot a little closer as her lips connected with Lexa’s once more. From the kiss, she couldn’t help but to drag her right hand over toned abs of the very fit commander, she was sure she’d felt Lexa shiver from the touch but she figured it was in her mind. Before finding a resting place on Lexa’s left side, her left hand used as support so that she didn’t topple over.

 

Kissing Clarke was like a drug for Lexa so when it happened, she didn’t want it to stop, she wanted it to go on for as long as possible. Her lips meshing with Clarke’s perfectly, tasting the sweet berries from the food she’d just eaten to Clarke allowing entrance for her tongue to run along teeth, to Clark nipping Lexa’s bottom lip in the process. All of it was too much. Before Lexa could realize what she was doing, she was pulling Clarke down with her, down on top of her as she lied back on the ground.

 

It didn’t even faze Clarke as she repositioned herself on top of Lexa, her body gently coming in contact with the usually so rough commander, she could feel a sense of calm she’d never felt in the presence of the commander before. Clarke pulled back from the kiss and looked upon Lexa, “Never could I have imagined that I’d be here now, with you.”

 

Lexa brushed another stray strand of hair out of Clarke’s eyes, as she smiled, “I was told from a young age that I would do great things, but being here with you… All my responsibilities…”

 

“They fade away…” Clarke ended Lexa’s sentence because she knew what she meant. “I feel the same,” as she leaned in for another kiss. Her lips brushing against Lexa’s, there was passion sure but it wasn’t hunger. This kiss was about expressing the love they have for each other without saying the actual words.

 

Not long later, Lexa could smell something that she couldn’t pinpoint until she could feel some additional heat, then it hit her, “Clarke, get off of me!” She shouted practically throwing Clarke off of her.

 

In a split second moment being so aroused from the kiss, Clarke didn’t, at first, comprehend the meaning of being pushed off of Lexa because all she could think about was the strength that Lexa had just showcased in that moment. Until the meaning came to her, “What, what did I do?”

 

“You are on fire!” Lexa pointed out as she began to pat out the fire on Clarke’s pant leg before looking around for the cup of water she had brought out for the fire.

 

Clarke finally connected the dots and noticed the fire on her pants, instincts kicked in and she franticly began moving her legs around to put the fire out until she felt water hit her leg, effectively putting out the fire. “Not going to lie, I thought that heat was from the kiss.” She couldn’t help the laugh that escaped from her mouth.

 

A few seconds later, Lexa gave in and couldn’t help but to chuckle alongside Clarke. If the woman who was actually on fire could find humor in the moment, so could she.

 

“Note to self, do not make-out next to a fire. It’s just not a good idea,” She said between laughs.

 

“I am sorry Clarke, it is my fault. I should have been more careful,” Lexa tried to explain feeling responsible since it was her fault that Clarke wasn’t paying attention to what her legs were doing.

 

Clarke shook her head, “Lexa it’s not your fault. It was an accident. I’m okay; you’re okay, its fine. It’ll make for a funny story someday.” She leaned forward and placed a kiss on Lexa’s cheek. “Seriously, I’m fine.”

 

“If you say so,” Lexa still not sure Clarke was telling the whole truth.

 

“I am sure,” Clarke looked at Lexa trying to convince her that she was telling the truth. “Maybe we should get some sleep now.”

 

Lexa shook her head, “After that, I will not be able to sleep for a bit but you can go if you would like.”

 

“I would like to spend time with you so if you are out here, I’m staying out here,” Clarke sat down to the right of Lexa again.

 

“If you wish,” Lexa stretched her legs out. “If you are tired lie your head down and I will watch to make sure you are safe.”

 

Clarke yawned, “Yes, that is a good idea I think.” She did as she was told and lied down but instead of resting her head on the ground like normal, she took advantage of their new status and laid her head on Lexa’s right leg. She looked toward the fire and couldn’t feel Lexa trying to pull away so she figured Lexa must be okay with the added contact.

 

Lexa smiled as she began to run her fingers through Clarke’s hair as she to stared at the fire. What seemed like hours went by before Lexa had leaned back on the ground dozing off as Clarke continued to sleep on Lexa’s leg.


	18. Day 8 (Part 1)

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Okay, with this chapter this site is now caught up to Fanfiction.net. Follow me there or follow me here. Same username, same title. I'm hoping to finish chapter 19 soon.

**_DAY 8_ **

With the change of seasons upon them, the sun was coming up later each day and in this moment Indra was found walking out toward where the horses and cart were in darkness. She was left following the torches in the path that led from the group of grounder huts and the ark walls. Outside the walls were a group of horses and the carriage of materials Raven required. As she approached the head of the horses, her horse to be exact, she heard a commotion at the back of the line of horses.

“Wick, you cannot work on the object while I’m away!” Raven barked as she placed some tools in the cart.

 

“That’s ridiculous. I am just as qualified as you are to work on it,” Wick defended himself before looking over to Monty for some help.

 

Monty shook his head, “No way man, I am not getting in between you two again. That didn’t work out well for me last time.”

 

“What is going on?!” Indra came around the edge of the cart and starred at all three of them.

 

Raven almost fell on the ground she jumped so high from the sudden addition of another person. Trying not to look like she had just seen a ghost, she tried to control her breathing. It didn’t help that Indra looked terrifying in the torchlight. “Uhh… We… I…”

 

“Spit it out!” Indra wasn’t having any of this. She wanted to leave but with this she was being held back. “What is the problem?”

 

Raven took a deep breath before opening her mouth again, “Wick here… He thinks… Uhhh… That it would be a good idea to work on that mysterious object while I am away.”

 

“Have you not been the one that has been working on it?” Indra looked to Raven but wasn’t going to show anything. She was determined to get this situation under control so that they could be on their way.

 

“That’s my point. I’m the one that has been-“

 

“Then what is the problem. If she is the one that is working on it, why are you trying to work on it?” Indra starred at Wick looking for an answer.

 

Wick’s mouth opened and closed with no sound coming out of his mouth. “Well…” He didn’t know how to say what he was saying with this grounder looking so intimidating. “I just thought…”

 

“You thought what? That you would pick up where she left off.” Indra took a few steps toward Wick. “People like you do not last long on the ground. Do you think I got to this position by trying to steal others positions?” Indra looked for an answer on his face and when she knew that she wasn’t going to get one. “Raven has shown her usefulness, you on the other hand… You are the reason that we almost lost the war. If you even think about touching that object…” She let that sink into him. “Well, I am sure you can imagine what would happen.” She watched him gulp in fear. It didn’t even faze her anymore that she could cause that kind of fear in people.

 

Out of nowhere Octavia walked up to the group, “Okay, so when are we leaving?”

 

Indra backed away from Wick and looked over at Octavia, “Leaving? You are not leaving.”

 

Octavia looked at Indra confused, “What do you mean? It was my idea to…” She trailed off as she remembered that one of the conditions of being Indra’s second was not to question her.

 

Indra looked over to Raven, Wick and Monty who were just staring, “Do you not have somewhere to be?”

 

“Right… Yes, Yes, we do. I’ll just… I’ll get the rest of my stuff,” Raven stumbled over her words as she ushered the rest of them out of the way so that those two could speak privately.

 

Indra looked back at Octavia, “You are staying here.”

 

“Indra, I should be the one leading the search party.” She tried to say with as much force as she could muster staring at Indra. “It was my idea.”

 

Indra shook her head, “It is no longer a search party. We know where our leaders are. You are needed here.” Octavia tried to protest when Indra cut her off. “You are the interim commander and with my presence not being here, you need to make sure that order is kept up. Lincoln will stay to help you.” She did not ask this of Octavia, she made sure it was understood as a command.

 

Octavia looked away for a brief moment pissed that she wasn’t going to be able to go along with Indra and Raven before looking back to Indra. “I understand.”

 

“We will be back in a few days. Winter will soon be upon us. Make sure everyone is ready,” Indra swiftly nodded in response as she watched Octavia nod toward her. “Raven!” She called out.

 

Raven ran back over dropping a bunch of stuff on the cart, “Yes Indra.”

 

“Gather the rest of your things, we are leaving,” Indra commanded as she made her way to the front of the horses.

 

As she was walking, she was stopped mid-way by another sky person. “Indra, I know that you and I haven’t gotten along much but when you find Clarke, could you give this to her?” Abby asked Indra as she handed over a book with a pencil.

 

Indra looked at the objects before looking back up to Abby, “Clarke is alive. It would mean more to her if you give them to her yourself.”

 

Abby opened and shut her mouth a few times before finding the words, “I know, I—uh….” She paused before nodding. “You know what? You’re right. I will save these. Besides it will mean more if it came from me anyways.”

 

Indra nodded thinking, _Sky people are so strange._ She shook her head as she got up on her horse. Looking back she noticed Raven sitting in the cart with all of her equipment and materials. “Let us be off.” She briefly looked from Raven to the five warriors, one on the horse attached to the carriage and the other four on separate horses, with Shay next to her.

 

With that, they were off into the woods as the sun slowly made it known shining between the trees. Raven was a little startled by the sudden movement but quickly recovered grabbing the few pieces of padding that weren’t properly tied down for the trip.  

 

XXXXXXXXXXXX

 

By this point the sun was high above the trees shining down on two sleeping bodies. It was clear from Sierra’s position that Lexa didn’t have the heart to move from her position, with Clarke lying against her leg, as she was awkwardly lying back against their tent with her head propped up so she could see.

 

Sierra stood there for a good ten minutes watching the scene in front of her trying to decide if she should wake the two beauties up or let them continue to sleep. Before she could make up her mind however, she noticed the commander stir in her sleep.

 

Lexa’s eyes opened ever so slowly probably due to the terrible position she was in but as she caught sight of someone staring at them, she opened them quite quick and sat up right away. The quick movement caused Clarke’s head to hit the ground causing her to wake up.

 

“Ouch,” Clarke pushed herself back up with her right hand and rubbing her head with her left hand. “There are other ways you could have woken me up.” She groaned in pain as she stared at Lexa before she noticed Lexa wasn’t looking at her and followed her eye sight.

 

“How long have you been standing there, Sierra?” Lexa tried to just ask but sounded more so like a command because she was so pissed.

 

Sierra couldn’t contain the laughter that erupted from her lips as she walked over to the two helping them get up on their feet. “Let’s just say you’re losing your touch and leave it at that.”

 

Clarke went into the tent and grabbed her gear before exiting the tent and rejoining their group.

 

“That long?” Lexa asked seriously wanting to know now.

 

“I have been standing there quite a while trying to figure out if I should wake you two up or not.” Sierra explained trying to contain her laughter but failing miserably.

 

“You should have woken us up Sierra because I am going to have the worst headache today from that,” Clarke admitted still rubbing the left side of her head where she connected with the cold hard ground.

 

Lexa looked over to Clarke realizing she was the reason for the injury, “I am sorry Clarke. She just surprised me. I was not thinking.”

 

Clarke shook her head, “Don’t worry about it. I understand. I would have done the same if someone was found hovering in front of me when I woke up.” She peered over at Sierra.

 

Sierra clearly got the message coming from the both of them and suggested, “You know there are ways to help get rid of headaches right?” She wiggled her eyebrows to try and get the message across.

 

Lexa dropped her head in annoyance as she shook her head. Once again, Sierra was meddling in her love life. Before it got any worse, she asked, “Anyone hungry? We should get food before we train.” Lexa looked over to Clarke, “That is if you are still up for training.”

 

Clark nodded, “Yeah, I want to learn how to prevent Cyrus from getting my sword from me like Warrick and Clyde did. I don’t care how much my head pounds. I want to learn.”  

 

“Are you sure?” Lexa asked wanting to make sure that Clarke was sound enough to train.

 

“Yes. Lexa, I’m fine.” Clarke looked at Lexa trying to convince her that she was fine.

 

“Alright, I’m starving,” Sierra turned to make her way toward the eating area.

 

As they approached the area, Sierra looked at the two of them. “I’ll get the food. You two find a place to sit.”

 

Lexa nodded as she walked with Clarke to the end of a table. There weren’t many grounders there yet so they sat where they’ve been sitting lately. There was a chair at the end of the table that Sierra generally sat at while Lexa and Clarke sat to the right and left of her but this time Lexa sat there sitting right next to Clarke.

 

As soon as Clarke sat down to the right of Lexa, she rubbed her temple area once more still feeling pain from the hit.

 

“Clarke, I will not look at you as weak if you do not feel up to training today,” Lexa admitted speaking low so that only Clarke could hear.

 

Clarke dropped her left hand down and placed it on Lexa’s right hand being careful of her injury, “I appreciate what you’re saying but I need to do this. I want to be as ready as I can be. I realize that with your injury that that might not be for a while but I’d rather be ready now and perfect my skills, rather than learn slowly and not be ready.”

 

Lexa nodded and before she could even comprehend what she was doing she got up and leaned over placing a kiss on the side of Clarke’s head. Sitting back down Lexa added, “I just want you to be safe, you know that right?”

 

Clarke feeling the warmth from the kiss on the side of her head, the love that came from gesture making her feel a bit better, “I know. I know all of this is hard for you.”

 

Before Lexa could answer Sierra walked back with the food in hand trying to balance three plates and realizing what a dumb idea it in fact was. Clumsily she barely was able to get the plates on the table. “Phew, that was close.” Sitting down across from Clarke, she dug into her food without even thinking. Looking up she noticed Clarke and Lexa starring at her, “What?”

 

Clarke shook her head before digging into her food.

 

“That was very graceful,” Lexa said very sarcastically as she picked up a berry and tossed it in her mouth.

 

She put out her hands in confusion, “You try carrying three plates full of food.” She shook her head, “Not easy.”

 

“Clearly not for you,” Lexa chuckled.

 

“I agree with Lexa, that was bad,” Clarke added. “I was worried for me in this challenge but that that was something else.”

 

Sierra realized quite quickly that the tables had turned on her from earlier. “You two should try carrying that much food. It’s a very difficult venture.”

 

“Sure looked like it,” Clarke chuckled.

 

Sierra picked up a berry and tossed it a Clarke. It connected with her head.

 

“Hey, I’m eating here,” Clarke exclaimed picking up another berry from Sierra’s plate and tossing it at Sierra.

 

“Uh… Why are you throwing my food? Throw your own food,” Sierra tried to pick up a berry from Clarke’s plate but Clarke was quick enough to pull her plate out of the way.

 

“I need this for strength for training. Besides you started it,” Clarke pointed out picking up some of the meat and tossing it in her mouth while she held the plate up.

 

“Sure…” Sierra trailed off.

 

“That’s enough!” Lexa finally butt into the conversation. Looking between the two of them Lexa almost commanded, “Eat your food so that we can train.” She looked straight at Sierra, “Clarke needs to be as ready as she can be for this challenge. Throwing food at each other is not going to help that.”

 

Sierra threw one more berry at Clarke to spite Lexa’s words and then continued to eat her food.    

 

With the end of that, they went on to eat their food in peace.

 

XXXXXXXXX

 

About an hour passed by before Clarke, Lexa and Sierra made their way over to the training area.

 

As they arrived Clarke pondered a question, “So how is this going to work?”

 

“Sierra and I are going to help you learn how to best someone trying to knock your sword from your hands so that you do not have to always rely on your dagger.” Lexa explained as Clarke pulled her sword from its sheath on her back.

 

“Wait, you and Sierra? What about your arm?” Clarke asked worried Lexa was going to try to push her injury.

 

Lexa nodded, “Clarke, do not worry about me. I was trained by the best. I know how to fight with both arms.”

 

Clarke’s look went from one of worry to confusion, “If you are going to help train me now, why did you have Morad train me before?”

 

“That was different Clarke. I could not do all of the training with you because of my arm. He was more equipped to train you on everything. Whereas this is something I could do in my sleep. It’s small enough that it will not cause me pain but large enough that it could be the difference between you winning or losing.” With some difficulty, Lexa eventually got her sword from its sheath on her back as she looked at Sierra with a swift nod.  

 

Sierra removed the sword she was carrying from its sheathe and moved into the circle.

 

Lexa moved into the circle with Clarke standing off to the side of the both of them. “We are going to show you the situation, and then teach you how to avoid it, okay?”

 

Clarke nodded as she moved out of the circle.

 

Lexa and Sierra moved around each other. Sierra waited for Lexa to lunge at her because she knew that Lexa would want to show how to avoid losing your sword. Sierra knocked Lexa’s sword down and was about to swing the sword around locking the blade in place and causing Lexa to lose the sword, when Lexa kept her grip and twisted as well causing Sierra to lose her grip instead. Clarke watched surprised at the movement Lexa was able to do with her injury causing her to be even more so in awe of the commander.

 

Lexa turned to Clarke, “That was one of the ways. If you felt confident in your abilities, you could take a shot to the throat with your fist. That would prevent them from knocking your sword.”

 

“What Lexa is saying is, is no matter what is happening you need to ensure that you have a good grip on your sword. If you do not, you will lose it. The movement Lexa did could easily have failed had she not been holding onto her sword properly. She may be injured but Lexa has been doing this for years, it will not be so easy for you.” Sierra added to Lexa’s explanation. “Do you want to try?”

 

“We’re going to use the real swords, then?” Clarke asked wanting to make sure she was using the sword given to her.

 

Lexa nodded, “Yes, you do not need to worry about getting cut. This is merely a tactic to prevent ones sword from being knocked out of your hands. Nothing more.” Lexa moved to where Clarke was standing so that she could practice with Sierra.

 

The first few times Clarke tried, she failed to prevent Sierra from knocking her sword out of her hands. After several attempts and hours later, she was starting to think that she would never learn how to prevent it. Then after what seemed like forever, she did it. She moved her sword in the way that Lexa had been saying and was able to not only prevent Sierra, but knock hers out of her hand as well.

 

Clarke’s mouth fell open, “Did I just do that?”

 

Lexa couldn’t help the close lipped smile that appeared on her face, “Yes you did. Try again.”

 

Clarke did just that, she made sure she had a good grip on her sword and did as she was directed to swing her sword around and knocked Sierra’s sword out of her hands. Each time she did it, the surprise slowly dissipated and became more second nature to her. She was feeling the power in her and felt even more confident about her abilities for the coming challenge.

 

Lexa could see the confidence in Clarke shining and she was confident that if Clarke tried to fight another one of Morad’s warriors, she would have no difficulty in beating them if this occurred. “Do me,” Lexa suggested.

 

Sierra had to contain her laughter from the word choice that Lexa used, “Yeah Clarke, why don’t you go against the master? You’ll get a much better idea of how you’re doing.” She moved to the side tight-lipped trying to contain her laughter.

 

Clarke turned to Lexa, “Okay. Let’s do this.”

 

Lexa moved back into the circle looking across at Clarke. They hadn’t been across from each other about to train for almost a week. Not since before they had tumbled off that cliff.

 

Lexa lunged at Clarke a few times but not allowing Clarke to move enough to even attempt to get Lexa’s sword from her. After a few swings, Clarke took a chance, Lexa moved with her left arm to knock Clarke’s sword free, when Clarke did what she was learned. They fought back and forth pushing each other back and forth trying to get the other to lose grip but neither would back down. After several minutes passed, as they continued to push, continued to try and get the upper hand, it appeared that neither was going to win this battle. They both had determination in their eyes; they both pushed away their injuries and fought like they had back at their camp. They both forgot the reason they were there. Forgot that they were trying to do one specific move and moved right into training. Swords were clashing against each other, they were both moving around the circle with ease. Clarke and Lexa were both aware of their surroundings and the weight of their swords. They both got lost in the moment. It wasn’t long before Clarke was able to get the upper hand on Lexa and knocked her to the ground on her back; Clarke got on top and put her blade close to Lexa’s throat with a smile on her face.

 

Lexa knew Clarke thought she’d won so when she wrapped her legs around Clarke’s body and used her strength to force Clarke down to the left of her, she rolled on top of Clarke and pulled her dagger to Clarke’s throat.

 

Clarke was shocked to say the least. She thought she’d beat the commander but apparently not.

 

Lexa got off of Clarke resisting the urge to kiss her as Sierra was standing right there and she wasn’t sure how keen Clarke would be on such a display of affection in front of someone. “You fought well Clarke,” she put out her hand to help Clarke on her feet.

 

Clarke smiled at the phrase, “I guess Anya really did train you.”

 

Lexa looked at Clarke confused, “I was her second for a time, why?”

 

“What you just said ‘you fought well’, she said those exact words to me when she and I fought at the drop ship after we escaped mount weather.” Clarke explained.

 

“Anya was a great warrior,” Lexa admitted so easily to Clarke feeling much more comfortable around the sky leader.

 

Clarke nodded agreeing with Lexa’s words. She had seen it. Even before the mountain men had captured them, Clarke had seen Anya fight. She’d seen the type of warrior she was. In a way, Clarke could see a bit of Anya in Lexa. It was clear that Lexa had learned a great deal from Anya.

 

Lexa looked upon Clarke and could feel the heightened adrenaline and hormones from the fight. She wanted so bad to gain some release and couldn’t help the look of hunger that was plastered on her face toward the blonde.

 

Clarke could sense the change in atmosphere. So quickly, it had changed from one of remembrance to one of tension. She could feel it in the air and she could feel it in the way that Lexa looked at her. She didn’t dare look at the commander in this state for fear of succumbing to the emotion. Instead she looked toward Sierra.

 

Sierra shook her head not wanting to get in the middle of this and not wanting to see more of her friend than what she’s seen already, “You know what, I think I’m going to leave now. Yeah, I’m sure I have other things I could be doing today.”

 

Clarke took a few steps toward Sierra, “Sierra, I thought we were training.” She called out as Sierra moved away from them.

 

“Not anymore. Bye Clarke.” Sierra turned right around and ran off into the woods not wanting to stay there one more minute.

 

Lexa wasn’t even fazed by the exchange between Clarke and Sierra as she had only one thing on her mind. It had been a long time since she felt this aroused after a fight. It was as though every part of her skin was asking to be touched, touched by the one person she had desired for the last little while. Her sword was lying on the ground somewhere, she wasn’t sure where as she continued to stare at Clarke. She didn’t move toward Clarke for fear that she would scare off.

 

Clarke could feel Lexa’s eyes on her back, and she’d be lying if she didn’t feel what Lexa was feeling. This fight brought on feelings that she had during that one fight they had back at their joint camp. Except the difference between then and now was that they weren’t hiding their feelings anymore. She didn’t push the arousal away like she did before; she used it to gain more motivation to get the master to the ground. Which worked until Lexa got the upper hand on her. She didn’t want to turn around, not because she didn’t want what they both so clearly desired but because she was afraid that this could push their relationship farther than they were ready for.

 

After nervously swallowing, she eventually gathered as much will power as she could muster and slowly turned around to face the commander standing about a meter or two away. Honestly, she couldn’t really fathom on how far Lexa was from her because the look in her eyes was one that Clarke had seen before. It was all too familiar as she had briefly seen it before Lexa had kissed her the first time. However, this time seemed more intense. It seemed more like Lexa had a mission. Like she was sent on a mission to capture Clarke’s heart and make it hers.

 

It was working.

 

Lexa took a few steps closer to Clarke, her intentions made clear from the look in her eyes. She could sense Clarke’s internal struggle and as much as she wanted this, she knew one very important thing. Taking a few more steps toward Clarke, she stopped right in front of her.

 

Clarke was lost in the look on Lexa’s face. It had changed a bit since Clarke turned around but she followed her path closer to her. Every step she took, every sway of her hips, the way she moved her arms as she walked. She watched every moment, memorized every movement, as Lexa came closer to her.

 

“Lexa wait,” Clarke watched as Lexa came to a stop in front of her. She wanted to touch Lexa, she wanted to kiss her but she was afraid of where it could lead. She had rushed her relationship with Finn and that didn’t end well. This time had to be different. The thoughts running through her mind were hard to handle from the good that could come from this to the bad. Maybe rushing this could cause them pain further down the road. Maybe it’ll make them stronger.

 

Lexa continued to watch the internal struggle Clarke was going through so she did the only thing she could think of, she reached out and placed her left hand on Clarke’s right arm just below her shoulder. This caused Clarke to look up at Lexa. Finally, their eyes connected. Lexa watched Clarke’s eyes move up and down from her eyes to her lips and back again. No words were spoken as Lexa leaned in. Her lips connected with Clarke’s in a gentle kiss. One that Lexa could tell Clarke was not expecting. They moved with each other in perfect harmony. Lexa moved her hands onto Clarke’s hips trying to prevent herself from taking it too far but she was struggling as Clarke wrapped one of her hands around her neck pulling Lexa closer, deepening the kiss further. Their lips moved together with such finesse, they weren’t sloppy kisses, yes they were filled with fire but they held more than just desire.

 

Clarke moaned getting caught up in the sweet taste of Lexa. She could feel herself letting go of all her worries in this moment.

 

Lexa tightened her grip on Clarke’s hips and pulled her closer. Their bodies connected and Lexa could feel herself losing her resolve as the heat between them was causing more heat to fill her insides. She thought the arousal was bad earlier, it had multiplied ten-fold in the last minute or so.  

 

Pulling from the kiss, Clarke had a fire in her eyes and pulling away made her want Lexa even more. The look of the neck she had craved since that public display a few days earlier was too tempting. Without much thought Clarke went to her desire and latched onto Lexa’s neck just below her ear.

 

Lexa didn’t think it was possible for someone to ever be able to make her weak to the knees but she was starting to realize that Clarke might be the exception. The feel of Clarke’s lips on her flesh heated her skin even more so. Change of weather? She wasn’t feeling the cold. All she could feel was her arousal building higher and higher and she knew if she didn’t do something, they may make a private situation very public.

 

With all her strength Lexa tried to pull Clarke away with her words, “Clarke…” She trailed off not getting much of an answer. If it were possible her knees felt much weaker. If she didn’t do something soon, she’d buckle down and take Clarke with her. Once on the ground, her resolve would be completely lost and she’d take Clarke right then and there in the middle of the training grounds. “Clarke,” she pleaded but tried to say with more force. The commander in her was succumbing to the person that wanted Clarke. “We need to stop…” Nothing was happening.

 

“Hmm….” Clarke hummed against Lexa’s neck causing a very desirable vibration.

 

That was it, Lexa pulled herself from Clarke’s grasp and took a step back, trying to catch her breath she looked at Clarke who tried to grab hold of her once more but Lexa put a hand out. “Clarke… I want this.” She said between breaths. “You have no idea but not here.”

 

Clarke grinned, “Then let us go back to our tent and finish what we started.”

 

Lexa couldn’t help the smile that appeared on her face before she shook her head of the thought of getting Clarke naked in her tent. “Clarke, are you sure this is what you want?”

 

Clarke pulled herself closer to Lexa, right in her personal space, “Lexa, I have never been surer in my life. At first I was a bit unsure because I was afraid of rushing what we have but… It just feels-“

 

“-Right,” Lexa finished off Clarke’s sentence completely understanding where she was coming from. “I just do not want you to regret it in the morning. Even one distraction could cause you harm in the challenge. I could not live with myself if I was the reason you lost.”

 

“Lexa, I do not see that happening. If anything it’ll give me more of a reason to fight, to live. I want a future with you and this is one of those perks.” Clarke winked at the mention of perks. “How about we walk back to our tent,” emphasis on ‘our’, “and we’ll decide what we do when we arrive?”

 

Lexa nodded. However, she had a feeling that she wasn’t going to lose her arousal anytime soon. They turned together and walked back toward the village as they picked up their swords on the way.

 

XXXXXXXXXX

 

Back in the joint camp of grounders and sky people, it was beginning to get dark outside. The sun was almost lost behind the trees and Octavia was sitting near a camp fire sharpening her sword. She looked up from sharpening and noticed two people on horseback emerge from the hole in the woods that Indra, Raven, Shay and a few warriors had left out of that morning. Lincoln noticed them first and couldn’t hold in a, “Oh… This is not good.” He stood arms crossed shaking his head as he could tell they’d recognized him from a distance and were making their way closer to him.

 

Octavia stood from her place next to the fire and moved to stand next to him, “Why’s that?”

 

“They are the messengers from Polis,” He answered as though it was common knowledge not realizing he was with someone who had no idea what it was he was referring to.

 

Octavia squished her eyebrows in confusion, “Polis? What’s a Polis? Is it a person? A Place?” She kept throwing out questions trying to gauge his reactions to determine what he meant. However, just like most grounders, she had a hard time trying to figure out what he was thinking.

He shook his head as he clenched his jaw before answering, “Polis is our capital.”  

 

“Capital of what?” Octavia asked still confused by Lincoln’s short quick answers. “Lincoln, capital of what?” She tried to get his attention.

 

He continued to stare that the grounders coming near them, “Polis is what came out of the wreckage.”

 

Octavia was still so confused, “Wreckage of…” Then it hit her. “You mean the wreckage of the war. The nuclear war, that happened ninety-seven years ago?” Her mouth dropped in awe as she turned to watch them ride closer.

 

He nodded, “Yes.”

 

Octavia made sure she’d make sure to ask Lincoln more questions about Polis but for now she was in awe at what they were wearing. It was very different from the tree people. Not so much armor. It was clear that they were still wearing armor, it just wasn’t as obvious. They of all people would know of the dangers in these woods but they had a delicate touch to how their clothing looked. The male was bald, and wore a jacket and pants that were of a darker red and orange color. The woman wore similar colors but was more fitted to her figure showing her power over the rest. Her red hair tied back in several braids. Their clothing reminded her of something she’d seen in one of the books she had read while living under the floor boards. It was something about temples.

 

The two riders approached the two of them, getting off of their horses with ease. They handed their reins to one grounder that came up as soon as he saw their approach and stood there holding the reins as he was unsure of how long their visit would be.

 

“Lincoln, I do believe I have not seen you since you were a boy. How is thee?” The woman asked with such a gentle tone. Octavia was not used to such a kind way of speaking with both Indra and Lexa so forceful with their words.

 

“I am good Daewon, you?” Lincoln asked.

 

“Well, thank you. Now, where is Lexa, I wish to speak to her,” She looked around for the commander but could not see her anywhere.

 

Lincoln clenched his jaw before responding, “She is not here.”

 

“Oh,” Her voice was stricken with curiosity at the whereabouts of the commander.

 

“She is in another village. She should be back in a few days,” Lincoln answered without giving them the whole story. “What message do you bring from Polis? We have been appointed the leaders while she is away.” He realized as soon as he said it that he was lying but he wasn’t sure how she’d take a sky person as the leader of the grounders while Lexa was ‘away.’

 

“Alright, if Lexa trusts you to lead in her stead than I will trust you.” She gave a quick smile before continuing on, “The elders request Lexa’s presence in Polis to explain the outcome of the war. They also would like the leader of the sky people to join her. From the legend, I believe her name is Clarke?”  

 

Lincoln nodded, “Yes, it’s Clarke.”

 

Daewon gave a nod, “Yes, she and Lexa are required in Polis. The elders would like to know what happened with the mountain men. We all know the story, but they would like it from the source. Can you see to it that she gets my message?” She walked back to her horse and pulled herself back on top of it. “Reko, let us be off.”

 

She watched as he got back up on his horse.

 

Octavia watched as they left until it occurred to her that it was getting dark and turned to Lincoln, “Why aren’t they staying the night?”

 

Lincoln continued to stare out at the two riding off into the woods once more, “They are the messengers of Polis. They always have messages to bring to other villages. They pride themselves on being the quickest of all messengers. If they felt that riding in darkness was okay, then they’ll do it.”

 

“What does this mean?” Octavia asked about the message.

 

Lincoln exhaled a large breath he was not aware he was holding, “I do not know what this means for Clarke. It was no surprise that they requested the commander’s presence. Ever since she became the commander she has made a point of going to Polis once in a while but Clarke… I do not know what it could be about.”

 

Octavia was stuck standing there with her thoughts wondering what these elders would want with Clarke as they watched the sun set before them.


	19. Day 8 (Part 2)

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Author's Note: Okay, this chapter is significantly shorter than most of my chapters, let me tell you why. I have been working on this chapter for over a month now rewriting it and reworking it and it's getting to a point where I'm getting bored of it. Having to look at it and reread it again and again, is causing me to not want to work on it at all. It's been like pulling teeth for me because I just keep getting stuck. I believe I've got it to a point that it'll work for the story. Anyways, this chapter was supposed to be much longer but I just need to post this now so that I can get away from it. It is just over 3,200 words. So it's not super short but it's also not as long as I'd like it to be either. It is however all Clarke and Lexa. The next chapter is going to be way more fun for me to write so I should be able to get back into my love of writing this fanfic and get out of my funk. 
> 
> PLUS, with The 100 finally being back, the fact that I have no more physical therapy and the holidays are over, I'm hoping I should be able to get back into posting 1-2 chapters a week. 
> 
> Oh, I wanted to make sure I mentioned something from Chapter 18. Of those of you that left reviews, a few of you were worried about the Polis Messengers. I'm sorry, that was my bad. I got lost in the dialogue and made it more mysterious then it actually is. Without spoiling anything know that the chapters that will be in Polis will be a break from everything they have been dealing with this entire time. You have nothing to be worried about. I promise.
> 
> I hope you enjoy.

_**DAY 8 CONTINUED…** _

Once they arrived to the tent, they wasted no time entering. They didn't care who saw, how they reacted to it, nothing. For the first time since they came to this village, they didn't feel like they needed to pretend they were engaged to be united. They were just two people in love, wanting to show it to the other. They felt free. All the worries of challenges and potential deaths left their minds and they were left with just each other.

They stood inside the tent across from each other a few steps away from the bed.

Clarke looked over to the bed, feeling a tad nervous but as soon as she pulled her eyes back to Lexa, her nerves went away. Where she was feeling nervous, she could see in Lexa's eyes that even though it was clear that Lexa wanted this just as much as she did, that Lexa would not push this. This feeling, this caring gesture was enough to calm Clarke. She knew that Lexa would wait if Clarke needed too. This made Clarke fall even more so for Lexa.

Lexa carefully watched Clarke, to gauge whether or not this was a good idea or not. She knew she wanted to be with Clarke completely but she also knew that they only just admitted their feelings to one another. Lexa parted her lips without realizing it wanting to say something, anything but her mind couldn't get past her arousal for the woman in front of her. The look of pure lust in ocean blue eyes to the way Clarke kept fighting looking her in the eyes to clearly looking at her lips and back up to her eyes. It was like she was fighting an internal battle. Kiss or not to kiss.

Clarke couldn't take it any longer, the look in those emerald eyes, she was not going to get used to looking at any time soon, was staring into her soul. It was like being warmed from the inside out. She wouldn't be surprised if she was blushing from the attention. The look, the feeling of it all was drawing her closer to Lexa; she took a step closer to the commander. They were close already, she's not sure how she was able to get a step in but by this point she wasn't aware of anything but Lexa. All she knew was that she needed to be closer; she needed to feel the commander, close the distance between them. It was clear that Lexa was waiting for Clarke to make the move so she made the move. Her hands grazed Lexa's hips in an effort to pull her even closer as she connected her lips with Lexa's.

Lexa closed her eyes just as Clarke's lips connected with hers and in an instant she relished the feel of Clarke's lips against her own again. It was like coming home. There was no rush, sure there was hunger but it wasn't just about having sex, it was about being with each other on a whole other level. Lost in the feel of Clarke's hands on her body, she wanted to deepen the kiss further before directing Clarke toward the bed. She brought her right hand up to tangle in Clarke's blonde locks when she pulled back from the kiss and winced in pain. She tried her best not to show the pain she was feeling but it was no use as she stumbled back into the table behind her crying out in pain. It felt as bad, if not worse than when she had woke up in that cave.

Clarke watched the ordeal in front of her, "Lexa, are you alright?" Finally, as the arousal was leaving her and she took in the picture in front of her, it clicked. Lexa was gripping her right arm. "Your arm," It was all coming back to her. The fact that during their 'practice fight' Lexa's splint hadn't been on, or wasn't on at all, and now she was in pain. "From the fall, I must have re-injured your arm and shoulder."

Lexa clenched her teeth in pain and nodded a little not wanting to admit that she was in pain even though it was quite clear that she was.

"Let me look," Clarke suggested as she stepped closer to Lexa. She ran her hand around Lexa's right shoulder. "From what I can tell, you haven't dislocated it again. You would have been feeling pain as soon as you hit the ground had you." She moved on to looking at Lexa's arm and could see the movement was minimal which seemed like a step backward from where she was before the fight. "We really shouldn't have practiced together," Clarke barely said above a whisper as she assessed the added damage to her arm.

Lexa heard the exclamation quite clearly, "Do not blame yourself Clarke. I wanted to test your skills in fighting more than anyone. I needed a reason to get you in the ring. I saw a chance and I took it. I would not take that back for anything."

"Lexa, your arm was healing!" Clarke was pissed to say the least, that Lexa had tricked her into fighting with her.

"Clarke…" Lexa needed to say what she needed to say but didn't know how to say it. After a few moments, she found a way to put what she needed to say into words, "When I learned that Cyrus had challenged you, I wanted to do anything in my power to prevent you from going through that. I have had my fair share of challenges. I know how bad they can get. I did not want that for you and now…" She shook her head forgetting about the pain for a brief moment, "There is not anything in this world that I would not do to make sure you are ready. I needed to know for myself that you are ready to fight Cyrus."

Clarke was speechless, she was sure she just heard what she heard but she had to make sure her ears weren't deceiving her. "Wait… You think I'm ready?"

Lexa couldn't help but to smile amongst the intense pain, "Clarke, I might have been able to roll you over once you had taken me down but the truth is… If that was a real fight, I would not have been able to do what I did because I would have been dead. Not many can say that they beat the commander in a fight."

"Without your injuries, I'm sure I wouldn't have won as easily," Clarke stammered feeling an onset of shyness toward her fighting abilities.

"You are probably right. It would have been more difficult but I do not think it would be impossible for you." Lexa responded with determination. She hoped that Clarke would take it to heart and not doubt what she was saying.

Clarke couldn't help but to feel a new found power that she hadn't realized she had within her. In this moment, more than ever before she truly felt that she had a chance, a real chance, to beat Cyrus. All she could think was that when she has training with Morad next, she was going to go into it with the determination that she was feeling at this exact moment.

After a few minutes, Clarke noticed that Lexa was still wincing whenever she moved her arm. With some hesitation in her voice Clarke tried to say with force, "I need you to take off your shirt."

Lexa looked up from her arm in pain a little shocked at the statement. The shock clearly showing on her face, just as she was going to question it Clarke spoke again.

"I know it's a little strange with everything…" She motioned between them and the bed feeling nervous that she even asked the question in the first place. "However, I need better access to your arm if I'm going to re-splint it." Clarke pointed to the arm Lexa was gripping.

Lexa just nodded in understanding. She first removed her gloves. Then with her hands she undid the buckles on the corset around her waist before she grabbed the bottom of her shirt, arms crossed and lifted her shirt but it didn't get lifted too high before she let go in pain. "Uhhh… That is not… I cannot." She was at a loss of words as she watched Clarke watch her attempt and fail at taking her own shirt off. She tried with one arm and failed once more. She felt weak in front of Clarke.

"Would you be okay with me helping you?" Clarke asked a little tentatively wanting to make sure she didn't cross any boundaries that Lexa didn't want crossed.

Lexa didn't know what to say because this was an intimate gesture, someone else removing clothing, but she also knew that her arm was in intense pain. Before she had fully accepted it herself, she noticed herself nodding yes. To hide the realization that her body was betraying her thoughts, she responded with, "I do not see any other way of you splinting my arm."

"Can you lift your arms up?" Clarke asked.

Lexa did as she was told and lifted her arms above her head waiting for Clarke to remove her shirt.

Clarke moved close again and as she placed her fingers under the material, she couldn't help but to notice Lexa flinch from the instant skin to skin contact. "Sorry," she apologized as she put her focus on the shirt and not the woman staring into her soul currently. As she lifted the shirt, she noticed a black tank top going up with the shirt. With her right hand she held the tank top down and lifted the shirt high enough that she thought the tank top wouldn't go with it. Once she was sure of that, she used both hands to pull the shirt over Lexa's head and off of her arms. The shirt came off and Clarke swallowed nervously from the close proximity to Lexa. She held on to the shirt as her brain completely stopped functioning. She couldn't help but to admire Lexa's clearly defined muscles on her arms, her mind couldn't help but to look at Lexa's covered abs. She had a feeling that they were equally as defined.

Lexa used her left hand to move Clarke's chin up to look her in the face, "The splint."

Clarke jumped out of her trance, "Yes, right, the splint. Sorry, I got distracted."

"I could see that," Lexa couldn't help but to smile that she was able to have such an effect on Clarke even if they weren't in the heat of a moment.

Clarke placed Lexa's shirt on the bed as she looked around for something that could be used as a splint when she noticed some scrolls. "Could I use the rods from those scrolls for your splint?" She asked as she walked over and held them up for Lexa to see.

Lexa nodded, "Yes, that is fine."

"Okay," Clarke acknowledged as she pulled the rods from the papers attached. "Pull the chair up to the bed."

Lexa looked at Clarke confused, "Why would I need to do that?"

"It'll be easier for me to attach your splint, than if you were standing," Clarke explained as she moved to sit on the end of the bed waiting for Lexa to move the chair next to the table.

Carefully, Lexa lifted the chair with her left hand being careful not to jostle her right hand much and moved it right in front of Clarke. She sat down on the chair and brought her right hand up onto her lap wincing as she did so.

Clarke reached over and carefully lifted and pulled Lexa's right arm onto her lap as she positioned the two rods on either side and then used some rope she found on the table with the scrolls, to tie the scrolls to Lexa's arm. She pulled as tight as she felt it needed to be so the rods weren't loose but loose enough that it wasn't cutting off circulation to Lexa's hand. "There, how does that feel?" Clarke asked as she looked upon her work once more checking the rope and the positioning of the rods.

"It feels fine Clarke," Lexa couldn't keep her eyes off of the blonde working on her arm.

Clarke could feel eyes on her, "It would help if you actually looked at your arm and moved it to give me a proper answer."

"I trust you Clarke."

"I know but you still need to move in it so that I can see if anything isn't attached properly," She finally lifted her eyes off of Lexa's arm and up to Lexa's emerald eyes to try and convince her.

Without thinking about it, Lexa's flexed her right hand and moved it around a bit, even though she was holding back the pain caused from the movement.

Clarke looked upon Lexa's arm as Lexa moved it around, "Well, it looks like it's good. How is the pain?"

"It is fine," She answered failing to sound convincing.

Clarke shook her head, "You are not fine. Where is the… the medicine that Sierra gave us?" She asked looking around the tent. "She gave it to you. Where did you put it?" She turned back to Lexa and could see the battle going on in her eyes. "Lexa, I know you think that admitting you need help is a weakness but it's just me here." Clarke used her hands to motion to the very fact that only she and Lexa were in the tent. "I am not going to tell anyone that you need medication to dull pain from an injury."

Lexa reached down into her left boot with her left hand and pulled out the bottle that Sierra had given her. She didn't open it though, she just held it.

"You had it in your boot, this whole time?" Clarke asked not feeling as surprised as she thought she would.

Lexa nodded, "I had no other place to put it."

"With the way you've been acting, I thought maybe you threw it away." Clarke admitted reaching over to grab the bottle from Lexa. Once she had it in her hands she could see that it hadn't even been opened. "Why do you have this if you haven't taken any of it?"

"I kept it for you," Lexa admitted so easily.

Clarke looked at her confused, "For me? Lexa your injuries are far more severe than mine. Sierra gave it to you for you. Not for me. She ended up being right about my ankle. If anyone should be taking it, it should be you."

"Clarke, you were training. You hurt your hand, I caused you to hit your head today, you may still get injured even more so. I did not want to use up what medicine I had when you might need it," Lexa stared at Clarke hoping she would get where she was coming from.

"Lexa, I get what you're doing but my injuries are still not as severe as yours. Besides, if I got really injured, I'm pretty sure that Sierra would give me my own bottle." Clarke placed Lexa's right arm in her hands, "You need to think about yourself for once." She looked over to the table the chair used to be at and could see something familiar there. Walking over, she picked it up from the table and brought it back to Lexa, looking down at the commander sitting on the chair, Clarke advised, "You also need to be wearing your sling more."

Lexa did the only thing she could think of to pull Clarke away from trying to take care of her and took her left hand to pull Clarke's head down to her so she could capture the blonde's lips. Her right arm was still in major pain but she wanted a way to thank Clarke for all of her help.

At first Clarke wasn't sure if she should let it happen because she knew that Lexa was in pain but she couldn't stop it. It felt too good to stop the kiss from happening. She dropped the sling on the ground as she did the only thing she could think of with Lexa sitting on a chair and moved to sit on the commander's lap. Her brain was trying to say that this was not a good idea but her body was saying yes.

Lexa lifted her right hand to make room for Clarke to sit and once Clarke was seated, Lexa placed her hands on Clarke's hips.

The sudden contact pulled Clarke from the kiss slowly before she admitted in a daze, "Lexa… I want this. I want to be with you but…" She trailed off at a loss of words.

Lexa nodded, "I know. I want our first time to be special, without injuries and without fear of death."

"Then what are we doing here?" Clarke needed to know before she took things too far.

Feeling the dryness in the tent, Lexa sucked in her lips to wet them as she looked into blue eyes, "I do not have an answer for that. All I know is that when I am with you, I do not feel in control of myself. As though all of my training to not show emotion, and to keep myself under control, is lost when I am with you. You change me in a way that I have never felt in my entire life."

"Is that a good change?" Clarke asked wanting to confirm her suspicions from Lexa's reveal.

"Yes," Was all Lexa said because it was all that needed to be said.

Clarke leaned in for one more kiss using her hands to pull Lexa in deepening the kiss a bit more. A few more pecks on the lips and she found herself standing up from Lexa. She put her hand out to help Lexa stand up, "I don't know about you but I need to go for a walk before I even attempt to sleep in the same bed as you."

"Clarke, if it would be uncomfortable for you, I can sleep outside by the fire again," Lexa suggested as she stood up noticing the sincerity in Clarke's words.

Clarke's hand was still connected to Lexa's as she spoke, "As hard as this day has been from training with you and Sierra, to re-injuring your arm, to everything between us… Lexa, I do not want to spend time away from you. I just need to cool off. If you would like to stay here, you can but I have a feeling that you are equally as hot as I am." As she realized what she said, she added to it by leaning into Lexa and saying, "Both physically and figuratively." She smiled and then walked out of the tent.

Lexa's jaw dropped a little surprised that Clarke blatantly told her she was hot and then walked away. Lexa left her shirt on the bed and walked out of the tent in just her black tank top, pants and boots. She knew that wherever Clarke was going, she would follow. Even though she believed that Clarke could take care of herself, she couldn't help but to be a protector to Clarke.


	20. Day 9

Chapter 20

_**DAY 9** _

Clarke awoke the next day; she pulled herself up into a sitting position. She couldn't help but to look over to the sleeping commander that she could actually call hers now. For some time, she wondered if she'd ever be able to succumb to her undoubtedly attraction to Lexa because of the constant fear of death around them. Now in this moment, she felt like a weight had been lifted off of her chest. Yet another thing she didn't need to worry about. She could just be herself, falling for Lexa as she continued to prepare for what could be considered the fight that will prove who she is as a fighter.

Moving the covers enough for her to get out but not wake up Lexa, Clarke pulled herself up out of the bed putting on her shoes as she did. She walked over to the nearest table and picked up her swords in the sheath and carefully placed them on her back, tightening the strap so that they were snuggly on her back. Just as she was about to exit the tent, a familiar voice was heard.

"Clarke, where are you going?"

Clarke looked back unsure if Lexa had actually spoken or if it was in her imagination because Lexa looked like she was peacefully sleeping. Thinking that it was in her mind she turned back to leave shaking the question from her mind.

"Clarke, I'm coming with you," this time Lexa said with more force as she pulled herself from the bed just as Clarke did moments ago.

Clarke turned around to see Lexa getting out of the bed and putting her shirt back on with what looked like ease but had to be a definite struggle with her arm. There wasn't a moment that went by where Lexa wasn't trying to look tough when she clearly wasn't. Clarke wondered if she'd ever get to see Lexa showing that side of her that showed weakness or if it'd always be about strength. "Lexa, I'm just going out to do some meditation and tai chi before I do some training with Morad later. You don't need to come," She tried to convince Lexa but it was clear that nothing she said was going to change Lexa's mind.

Lexa picked up her sheath and sword before looking back to Clarke and with as much feeling that she could without looking weak, she admitted, "I need to come with you."

Clarke sensed worry coming from the commander which wasn't that new because of her training and getting injured but there was something different in the tone of her voice that Clarke couldn't seem to place. Feeling like Lexa obviously didn't mean what she said the night before. Clarke challenged Lexa's words "I thought you said I could take care of myself. That if you were at your full potential, I would actually have a chance at beating you. What about that? Did you mean any of it?"

Again Lexa put her sheath on her back and tying it without it looking like it caused her much pain. "Of course I meant it."

"Then what is this? You trust that I can take care of myself but you actually don't," Clarke was seething at the thought that Lexa was just playing her. Making her feel like she knew what she was doing but actually not.

Lexa took a few steps toward Clarke, "This has nothing to do with you. I meant what I said yesterday. I do believe that you can take care of yourself. You do not need me to protect you."

"Then why don't you trust me enough to go meditate alone?" Clarke questioned Lexa feeling like she was all over the board with her emotions.

Now only a few steps away from Clarke, Lexa looked into blue eyes that were filled with anger, "It's not that I do not trust you, Clarke. It's that I do not want to see what happened to Costia, happen to you. I…" Lexa looked away briefly as tears came to her eyes at the thought of seeing Clarke's head on a spear. "I thought that she would be safe because of my new position as commander but I was wrong and I paid for it. The fact is Clarke, how I feel about you is not a secret. As much as I would like it to be, it's not and because of that people are going to try and take that power from me. I cannot let that happen again so I am coming with you not because I do not think you cannot take care of yourself but because I am…"

"Afraid," Clarke finished off Lexa's sentence seeing where it was going and knowing that Lexa wasn't about to admit that she was afraid.

Lexa nodded her head without admitting it in words. "If you ever suffered that fate, I do not know if I…"

Clarke closed the distant between the two of them and pulled Lexa into a hug trying to calm her before pulling back and looking Lexa right in the eyes, "Hey, let's not think about that okay. I have enough to worry about with the coming challenge. I don't need you thinking that you're going to lose me every second of every day. If you want me to have someone with me at all times, then that's fine. If you want to be that person, even better but Lexa you have made me a better fighter than I ever could have ever imagined. You can be sure that if someone tried to take me, I wouldn't go easy."

Lexa couldn't help but to smile knowing that she was with someone as strong as she was.

"Now, if we don't get out there soon, I won't have time to meditate before training with Morad," Clarke leaned in connected her lips with Lexa's in a brief kiss. It was just long enough for Lexa to know that Clarke cared but not enough to create any heat.

Lexa tightened the strap from her sword so that it didn't fall off, before following Clarke out of the tent toward an area that they could use to meditate.

XXXXXXXXXX

About an hour or two later, Clarke and Lexa stopped meditating to have their morning meal before going their separate ways. As they were eating in silence, Sierra plopped down across from Lexa with Clarke sitting at the head of the table this time.

"Sooooooo…. How was last night?" Sierra wiggled her eyebrows making sure they knew what she was talking about it.

This time Clarke was the one time answer instead of Lexa, "Really? Ever heard of privacy Sierra?"

Lexa smiled as she realized that Clarke and Sierra were becoming friends.

"It was that bad huh?" Sierra asked staring at Clarke trying to gage a reaction. She leaned toward Clarke putting her right elbow on the table and using her right hand as a way to block Lexa from her view and tried to whisper but failed, "Her exes would never give me any details on whether or not she was any good in bed. Obviously, I was right that she needs some work. Thanks."

Of course, Lexa heard the whole thing and reacted, "Why would you care if I was any good in bed or not?!" She asked completely flabbergasted by the whole thing. "Last I checked Sierra, you and I have very different tastes."

Sierra shrugged, "That may be true but a girl can always be curious."

"I do not know, nor do I care, how you are in bed. How does what I do in tents any of your business?" Lexa asked the question Sierra was waiting for.

"Ha," Sierra laughed. "In tents, that's a good one. From the way you two were getting on the training grounds, I do believe if I wasn't there, there would have been no need for a tent." Sierra continued to laugh at the thought of them getting hot and heavy on the cold hard ground.

Lexa was about to respond, when Clarke cut in with the intention to put Sierra in her place, "For your information, Lexa is very good in bed." She said without a doubt in her eyes.

Sierra almost choked on the berry she put in her mouth at the revelation. After coughing for a bit, Sierra with a frog voice from almost choking responded with, "What did you say?"

"You heard me," Clarke stated knowing that Sierra had to of heard what she said otherwise she wouldn't have choked on her food.

Lexa put on her stoic commander face so not to give away that Clarke was clearly lying.

Sierra coughed a bit more and once she was sure the berry was gone, she was able to speak once more. "If she was so good, why not just say it."

"Because I'm not one to kiss and tell," Clarke looked over to Lexa and couldn't help but to wink before looking back at Sierra.

Sierra pushed her empty plate to the side, "Wait, so you two really did the deed last night?"

Off to the side of them in the distance, Morad came into view, "Hey Clarke, are you ready to go?" He yelled trying to get her attention so that he didn't have to walk all the way to her just to get her attention.

Her name caught her attention and when she turned in his directions she realized he was yelling at her, she yelled back, "Yes, I'm ready." She stood up from her chair and leaned down to Lexa, connecting her lips with Lexa's in a fiery kiss just enough to leave Lexa wanting more but mostly to convince Sierra even more so of what she said earlier. "I'll see you later?"

Lexa used what brain power she had left to produce a smile before she answered, "Yes… you will."

Clarke looked over at Sierra with a smirk, "Bye Sierra."

Sierra was left with her mouth open agape from what she just witnessed. She was too fazed to even think about saying goodbye.

Clarke smiled at the look and then turned and ran to catch up with Morad.

Sierra blinked a few more times before looking over to Lexa, "So…"

Lexa nodded, "Yeah, I know."

"That… That was…" Sierra trailed off not knowing where her brain was going at this point.

Lexa looked over to watch Clarke run toward Morad walking in the distance, "She is one of a kind."

"I'd say so. You are one lucky lady, Lexa." Sierra laughed once more. "I'm happy for you."

Lexa looked back to Sierra and could see the sincerity in her eyes, "Thank you Sierra. I can honestly say that I haven't been this happy in a long time. Not since…"

"Costia, I know. You deserve to be happy Lexa. You have really found a good one too," Sierra looked over to Clarke and in the distance could see her recovering from clearly tripping on something, which caused Sierra to laugh before looking back at Lexa, "Quirks and all."

XXXXXXXXXX

Several hours later, into the afternoon now, Sierra and Lexa are sitting next to Sierra's tent sharpening their swords when one of the scouts that Lexa had met days ago named Luka came running up to them.

"Commander," He shouted in haste waiting to make sure she looked at him before continuing. "You are needed at the gates."

Lexa stood up from where she was sitting, "What is this about?"

"We have spotted a group of people on horses coming this way. We have sent someone to get Morad but since you are here I thought you should be made aware as well." Luka tried to contain his uncertainty but was failing.

Lexa placed her sword back in its sheath on her back, "Do we have descriptions on who is coming?"

Luka shook his head, "No, we do not."

"Well then, let us meet these people. Get as many warriors as you can find and meet me at the gates. I want to be ready for anything," Lexa commanded before she gripped her right arm with her left hand before she took off in a sprint.

Off in the training grounds, Clarke was practice fighting against Warwick, one of the warriors she had practiced with two days prior, while Morad watched to see if there were any faults that needed to be corrected.

A warrior came out of the woods running toward Morad, "Morad, you are needed at the gates. Unknown people are making their way to our village. The commander has been notified, and is on the way to check it out."

Clarke and Warrick stopped fighting as the words left the warriors mouth, "Wait, do you need us to come too?"

Morad shook his head, "No, you continue practicing and I'll come get you if needed. Understood?"

Warrick, Clyde, Aleksy and Clarke nodded before Morad was on his way toward the forest.

Clarke looked at the other warriors, "Should we be worried or is this normal?"

The smaller warrior Aleksy answered, "No, this is normal. We always have unknown people coming into our village. If there is a problem, they will sound the horns. For now, we should continue practicing."

Since Morad was gone and Lexa most certainly would not allow what Clarke was about to suggest, she asked, "Could all three of you come at me?"

Clyde looked at her confused, "Wait, you want us three to fight you at the same time? Is that wise?"

Clarke shrugged, "Probably not but wouldn't it help with moving on the fighting grounds if I have more people to fight at once? Trikru are used to movement because of moving from tree to tree but I'm not. If I fight the three of you, it would help to hone my skills more."

Clyde turned to Aleksy and Warrick so that only they could hear what he said, "If we were to help her train like that…." They continue to whisper a bit longer before they turn to face her.

The biggest one, Warrick, walked out between the two of them and stood in front of Clarke, "We have a proposition for you."

Clarke nodded, "Okay, what is it?" She swallowed feeling a tad nervous what their proposition was since the last 'proposition' didn't end well with her being challenged and everything.

"We have been witness, and even experienced your skills in fighting and we agree that it is quite impressive that you have learned at the rate you have. For someone to learn what you have can sometimes take years but you've done it in such a short time. Whether you have had previous training or not, the level at which you fight is one to admire." Warrick explained with more sincerity that Clarke had ever seen in any grounder. That included Lexa.

Clarke knew how much Lexa cared for her and she also knew that Lexa would never lie about her skills so it's not that Clarke didn't believe that Lexa was right about her ability. It's that hearing what she's been told from Lexa, from a grounder that barely knows her, means more than anything. So of course she couldn't help the smile that appeared on her face from everything that Warrick had just said.

"With that said, we propose that we do as you suggest with conditions," Warrick finally got to the point of his long explanation.

"What conditions?" Clarke asked wanting to know as the fear was fading away.

"If we win against you, then you have to sharpen all of our swords and daggers so that they cut at a brief touch of the blade. If you win, then we will consider you one of us. That means no more training with Morad, you train with us. When we go hunting, you go hunting, when we practice on the grounds, you are there. We will help you hone all of your skills. Do we have a deal?" Warrick put out his arm waiting for a response.

Clarke recognized this type of hand shake back when Anya had offered to get Clarke in front of the commander. Without any hesitation, she threw her arm in the hand shake. Her right hand gripped his forearm as she gave a quick nod, "Deal."

"Then let us begin," Warrick moved to grab the wooden swords and daggers. He looked to Clarke and could see the confusion. "We are not using real weapons. The commander would have our heads if we cut you. We will do the same as before. If we get you in a situation that would be considered death before you get all of us, then the fight is over."

Once everyone was free of their own swords and daggers and each was left with different wooden swords, they all moved into the circle. Clarke stood in the middle and the other three around her. She took a brief moment to close her eyes and feel the world around her. From the particles of dirt rolling against the cold hard ground, to the cool air blowing through her hair, to the very distinct sound each other warriors made as they stood in place. Lexa was right; taking advantage of feeling the world around her was a good idea. She felt even more so confident that she would win not just because of her abilities but because of her ability to feel the world around her. In this moment, she felt like she could fight them with her eyes shut. She knew she wouldn't but she felt she could. Aleksy's sword made a distinct sound as he moved it around compared to the way Warrick's sounded.

She opened her eyes with determination and they could clearly see she was ready but she solidified that look with an answer, "Let's go."

With that Warrick made the first move, swinging his sword toward her with Clyde doing the same behind her, at the last moment she moved out of the way. They almost took each other out in one fell swoop. Her sword connected with Aleksy's and she quickly pushed him off moving back around dodging punches and slashes as she did. With quick work she was able to take down Clyde, when she got a well-timed punch to his but before getting behind him and putting her sword to his throat. With that Clyde was out of the fight.

She turned to the other two with a fire in her eyes. One they hadn't seen in a long time. With determination, they both charged at each other.

XXXXXXXXXXX

Back in camp, Lexa awaited the unknown people coming into the village with a group of warriors. She was about to pull her sword from its sheath when the clear leader of the group came through the gates on horseback. Instantly Lexa recognized that warrior. How could she not? She chose the leader of Trikru after Anya had died.

The warriors were waiting for Lexa's go ahead, when she spoke in Trigedasleng without looking at them, _"Stand down."_

As the warriors on horseback make their way into the village closing in on Lexa, the leader got of her horse to approach the commander, "Commander."

"Indra, it is nice to see you my friend," Lexa answered internally wanting to hug her friend but holding back because that would be very unlike the commander to do. "You got my message, but why are you here?"

"Commander, I felt that it was best to come get you myself. I know that you can take care of yourself but I was told of your injuries and wanted to make sure that you got the best care you could." Indra explained with the least amount of emotion possible, to not seem weak.

Lexa nodded in agreement, "I appreciate that but I still cannot ride a horse with my injury and if I felt that walking back was a good idea, I would have done it already."

Finally Raven made herself known as it took her some extra time trying to get off of the wagon with her leg. Plus with all the crap in the wagon, it made it hard to move through it all. Now that she was off the wagon, she walked as fast as possible to where Indra had gone and was met with the commander. "Hey Le-, I mean… ca- commander," Raven tried her best to cover up her mistake but failed miserably and everyone could see the failure. If her skin was any lighter, everyone would have been able to clearly see her blush.

"Raven, what are you doing here?" Lexa asked looking at Raven before looking back at Indra to further question, "I would have thought you would have brought Octavia with you Indra. She is still your second is she not?" She asked curious to know why a mechanic would be with Indra.

"Yes, Octavia is still my second. She is back at camp as an interim commander while you are away." Indra explained.

This caught Lexa's attention, "Indra, if anyone should be my replacement, it should have been you. Explain to me why she is?"

At this point, Morad showed up to the party and it was clear that there wasn't a need for his sword so he quickly put it away.

Lexa noticed Morad appear but awaited Indra's answer, "Well."

"Abby and I felt that if we tried to control each other's people it would not work so well. However, Octavia is both Trikru and sky person so we thought she would be respected more." Indra explained with as much emphasis as she could muster wanting to make sure the commander understood what she was saying.

"If I have any say here," Everyone looked at Raven who wanted to shrink into a little hole because of their combined look but decided to push past that fear. "They were right to make that decision. Besides, Octavia was more of a figure head. Abby and Indra still ran everything; she was just the voice of reason to pull our two people together. Nothing more."

Lexa looked to Indra for confirmation and when she received a nod, she accepted that and moved on. "Indra, you remember Morad?"

Morad and Indra shake, "Hello my friend." Morad greeted with a smile. He looked over to Raven. "You are..?"

"Oh, I'm Raven. I'm one of Clarke's people," Raven added that last bit in there because he looked a little confused at first.

"Yes Clarke, she is an impressive fighter," Morad gushed at his work at hand. "Well, commander if you don't need me I'll go back to training Clarke."

"Actually, Morad, I will go and see Clarke myself. I am sure Raven would like to see her," As Lexa said the words Raven almost jumped up and down at the chance to see her friend.

XXXXXXXXXXX

Clarke jumped to the side dodging Aleksy's sword, her sword coming in contact with Warrick's sword. She pushed him back as she sensed Aleksy's sword coming toward her back. She waited an additional moment to allow him to change his sword from a slash to a point and as he brought it to her back she moved to the left a step. His sword moving right past her and with the hilt of her sword she slammed it into Aleksy's hand holding the sword knocking it loose. Before he could think about pulling his dagger, she had her dagger to his throat.

Aleksy looked at her in shock, confusion came over his face. He was one of the shortest warriors this clan had but he was always the fastest. To lose a fight because he was too slow was too much for him to handle. He backed up and stood next to Clyde as they watched the rest of the fight. "She is better than you described," He couldn't help but to whisper over to Clyde.

Clyde nodded, "I am as shocked as you are."

Clarke turned to face Warrick with a new fire in her eyes because the last time it was just the two of them, she lost. She was determined to win this time. She wanted to be considered one of them. The prize was more than she could have ever asked for. Now holding her dagger in her right hand and her sword in the left she held her sword out and the dagger closer in a defensive stance. She moved easily around the circle taking a step toward him every now and then causing him to take a step back every time.

Finally, she lunged, their swords clashing. She defended each one of his lashes just as he defended each one of hers. It seemed as though neither Clarke nor Warrick was going to lose as they continued to defend each one of their movements, each one of their slashes. Their swords clashed together getting stuck and he tried to do as he did before to knock Clarke's sword from her but she did her best to defend it. It was true, he had more strength then she did. He could easily win this one and she was tempted to let him.

After weighing the options for a moment, she didn't let his strength take her over like she knew he would. Instead she used his strength against him by letting go of her sword and moving out of the way. He stumbled forward as the weight preventing him was removed from in front of him. She was quick with the decision and moved behind him and reached around him connecting her wooden dagger to his throat.

With that, he dropped his sword, "Okay, you win."

She pulled her dagger away from his throat, "I win."

He nodded, "You win."

XXXXXXXXXXX

Lexa, Indra and Raven make their way out of the forest and can see Clarke in the distant holding a sword against Warrick.

Lexa recognized this stance right away, it being the one that she and Sierra had helped Clarke practice the day before. She was confident that Clarke could get out of the situation if she truly believed. Then all of a sudden Clarke moved out of the way letting him stumble forward.

"Did Clarke just beat him?" Raven asked as she watched Clarke take a knife to the other warrior's throat.

Lexa couldn't help the smile that appeared on her face, "It does look that way, yes."

In the distance they could see the biggest warrior, the one that just lost to Clarke hoist her up on his shoulders as they clearly celebrated from such a win. It was a very confusing sight for Indra and Lexa because losing was not something to be celebrated.

As the three approached, the four in the fighting circle, Lexa questioned, "What is this?"

Warrick turned around with Clarke still on his shoulders and slowly helped her off as it was a rather large drop. Clarke stood tall with a smile on her face, "I am one of them now." Clarke could see the clear confusion on Lexa's face. "We made a deal. If I could beat the three of them, they would consider me as one of them. In that I could train with them."

Lexa took a moment to take in what Clarke was saying before looking at the other warriors, "You allowed her to convince you to let the three of you fight her at once. Whose idea was this?" She looked between the three of them with anger in her eyes.

Clarke put her hand up to pull Lexa back to her, "Lexa, this was MY idea."

"You could have gotten hurt, Clarke. Then what?" Lexa questioned Clarke now forgetting that there were other people in their vicinity.

"But I didn't. Lexa, I won. If I can beat them…" Clarke didn't know how to finish her sentence she was so high up on cloud nine.

Still very much pissed, Lexa pulled herself back to think about it more logically and not so emotionally when everything started to click. Clarke's clear reasoning for it and even the end outcome. She looked back at the three warriors, "Did any of you hold back?"

They all shook their heads, "No commander."

"We tried to use our three strengths to overcome Clarke, but she overpowered us all." Aleksy explained, "My speed, Warrick's strength and Clyde's swordsmanship. She bested us. She is one of us now. It's only right."

Lexa looked from them back to Clarke, who didn't look even a little fazed by all of this, "I think you are ready Clarke. I only wish I could have had more of an impact on your training."

Clarke hadn't even registered that Raven and Indra were even there as she looked upon Lexa and could see nothing but sincerity in those emerald eyes. "Lexa, you helped me the most. I only felt so confident because of you." She moved back, "Feeling the world, Lexa," she closed her eyes, "That's what helped me." She opened her eyes to look back at Lexa. "You did that."

Lexa felt a desire unlike anything she'd ever felt before. In this moment, what she wanted most was to kiss Clarke right there and then but she also knew that there were too many people around. She didn't want to look weak in front of her warriors and she wasn't sure how Clarke would feel. Maybe she wanted to tell Raven about their change in status before seeing it. She tried to detour the conversation to subdue her desire, "Clarke, uh, Raven," she motioned to Raven standing next to Indra.

Clarke turned her attention to Raven, "Raven. You're here." She looked at the mechanic confused, "Why are you here?"

Raven pulled Clarke into a hug before anything else taking Clarke a bit off guard. She pulled back to look at her, "You look well and Octavia better watch out for you. I can't believe you were able to do that. Last thing I remember hearing was that Le- the commander was knocking you on your ass." She covered up the mishap again as Lexa was in earshot.

Clarke smiled, "Yeah, I have a good teacher." She looked over to Lexa with a smile that could only be described as adoration.

Raven could clearly see something else in that exchange between the two leaders. She made a mental note to ask Clarke about it later. "So, why am I here?"

"Yeah, why are you here?" Clarke asked.

"With the commander's injuries we realized she couldn't ride a horse so I've brought materials to build something for her to ride on in the wagon," Raven smiled excited for her idea.

Clarke looked over to Lexa and could see the she was not okay with that, "I don't know Raven. Do you think that's a good idea with her injuries?"

"Clarke, it'll be fine. When have I ever been wrong?" Raven asked and then froze and looked at Clarke sternly. "Don't answer that. Besides, someone needs to put Cyrus in his place. If it's not you, I myself will find a way to kill him."

"It's been that bad?" Clarke asked.

Lexa decided to join into the conversation at this point, "What has he done?"

Raven moved to include Lexa in the conversation, "He's just been talking a lot of smack about how it'll be easy to kill Clarke. He actually tried to come with us so that he could kill you here." She looked at Clarke at the last part. "From what I've seen, he's going to have a hard time."

Clarke smiled from the praise, "Raven, I'm not going to go into the fight thinking I'm going to win. I'll let my abilities do that for me."

Lexa couldn't help the smile that appeared on her face from listening to Clarke talk about the challenge in a more positive tone instead of thinking she was going to die.

Indra leaned into Lexa and discreetly asked, "Do you require me to test her abilities for you?"

Lexa didn't look over to Indra and answered with no doubt, "That is not necessary Indra. I have tested her abilities myself and from this, she is clearly ready." She motioned to the other three warriors that had just faced off against Clarke. "She may look to you for additional guidance but I do not believe she needs to be tested anymore."

"Yes commander," Indra nodded.

Clarke looked back to Raven, "So where is this contraption of yours? I want to see it."

"Yes, it's in the village. I'll show you," Raven explained excited. She started moving toward where they had come out of the forest a little earlier.

Clarke started to follow when Warrick's voice stopped her.

"Hey Clarke, we'll call on you when we do some training," He told her as he handed Clarke her swords.

"Thank you. I'll see you later," She waved him goodbye as they went their separate ways.

With that, the four of them made their way back toward the village as Clarke strapped her sword back onto her back and her dagger back in her belt.


	21. Day 9 (part 2)

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Author's Note: I think this may be one of my longest chapters yet coming in at 7,318 words. I've been working on this on and off for about a week now, hopefully you guys enjoy it. I am currently on a holiday so I haven't had much time to write. Instead of been playing a lot of video games. However, I've finally finished this chapter. The last 2,500 words haven't been reread so if there are mistakes, I'm sorry. It was either post it now with potential mistakes or wait until tomorrow night to reread it. I figure you guys would like it now.
> 
> Oh, I've been meaning to dedicate a chapter to my good friend Drucilly. Who's birthday was in January but I keep forgetting to do it. This is for her and whoever may have also celebrated a birthday so far in 2016.
> 
> I'd say almost this entire chapter is Clarke/Lexa so that should hopefully make up for no chapter last week. :D
> 
> One more thing. I'd like all of you to know that once the challenge occurs, I will no longer be keeping track of days. So if you are getting tired of the days just know that they should end on day 12.
> 
> I hope you enjoy. :D

Chapter 21

_**DAY 9 CONTINUED…** _

They arrive at the cart several minutes later and Clarke was stuck looking at the mess in confusion, "Raven… I thought you brought something that would help Lexa to get back to camp without further injuring her arm? That looks like a pile of junk."

Raven moved right in front of Clarke, "I know, it looks bad and I may have lost some of it on the way but trust me. It'll work. When have I ever been wrong?"

That didn't help Clarke much and as she looked over to Lexa, she couldn't tell what the commander was feeling about the whole situation. She actually may have shown a hint of frustration that someone would even suggest such a thing for her. Just as Lexa was clearly about to say something about the idea, Clarke spoke up, "Alright Raven, where do we start?"

Moving next to the cart Raven explained, "Okay, let's get all the junk out of the cart and then we can figure out how to build it, sound good?" Raven looked to Clarke for an answer and could see confusion once more. "What?"

"You brought junk, but you think you can build it into something that will actually work?" Clarke asked wanting to further ask about her leg but felt that would be too sore of a subject.

Raven hoisted herself up onto the cart, "Trust me, I've got this."

"If you say so," Clarke responded with as she pulled herself up onto the cart.

Lexa shook her head at Clarke for speaking for her but couldn't help let out a smile that someone she cared for so deeply cared so much to try and get her back to their camp unharmed. It created a strange feeling in her belly knowing that someone was looking after her for once. Not just her trying to protect everyone around her. After a moment or two, she found herself walking over to where Clarke and Raven were in the cart. "How can I help?"

Clarke turned around a little surprised that Lexa would be there to help, "Uh… Well, Raven and I have almost gotten all of the 'junk'" emphasis on junk making sure Raven definitely heard her, "out of the cart and then I was going to help Raven assemble whatever contraption she had in mind."

Raven just rolled her eyes at the comment.

Lexa nodded in confirmation before trying to pull off some of the materials that she could reach without getting into the cart. She didn't know how well Clarke would react to her getting into the cart with them and didn't want to find out. She'd already taken her brace off to test Clarke's skills in fighting; she might not react very well if she pushed her injury again.

A couple of minutes pass before the three of them emptied the cart leaving a chair they had scrounged up from the Ark. It was awkwardly lying at the foot of the cart. It would need to be bolted to the cart bottom to be functional.

"Okay, so this is my idea…" Raven started to make sure she had the attention of both leaders. "I want to use that chair and add additional padding to it so that it should prevent any jostling from the rocks on the paths. Sound good?" Raven couldn't help the smile on her face from her brilliant idea.

Lexa stared at her flabbergasted, "I am not riding in that."

Just as Raven was going to question her Clarke jumped in, "Lexa, it'll be fine. This is just to get you back to camp nothing more. What do you have to lose?"

Lexa turned her head away from Raven so she might now hear what she was about to admit, "I will look like a fool. A commander cannot be perceived as weak. I know she is just trying to help but Clarke…"

Clarke pulled Lexa's eyesight back to her by pulling Lexa's right hand causing her whole body to turn and face Clarke. Looking into emerald eyes, she could see something she hadn't seen much which was Lexa clearly being conflicted. Conflicted about whether she should put all her energy into being the strong commander or succumbing to the person that was injured. "Lexa… You and I have been through so much lately, from the training, to the cliff, to your injury, and even us… I know that the thought of this must be hard for you. That you might seem weak but Lexa, you are not weak for wanting to deal with your injuries in a way that works for you. Besides, this is just a temporary thing. We'll be back in camp Jaha in… what did you say, a day and a half?"

Lexa nodded, "Yes that is about how long it would take on horseback."

"Then my mom will get a good look at your arm, probably put a cast on it and then you won't have to worry about horses jostling your arm. You won't have to worry about anything bothering your arm. You just have to get through this one thing. That's it." She couldn't help but to smile to give Lexa even more of a reason to believe what she was saying. "I'll make a deal with you, once we get say a kilometer away from camp, we'll walk the rest of the way. That way only myself, Raven, Indra and a few warriors will know of your riding on this junk."

"Don't mock my junk, Clarke," Raven responded with as she got the tools she required out of the box she had brought.

Clarke burst out into laughter over the response and because of Clarke's laughter; Lexa wasn't able to contain her smile any longer.

"I will take you up on that deal, Clarke," Lexa let go of her smile to make for a more serious business.

Clarke pulled back on her laughter and could see the seriousness in Lexa's whole face, "Then it's settled. We'll build a weird contraption for you to sit on for the ride home."

Lexa couldn't help but to feel a tad warmer at the mention of Clarke calling a place they both currently reside as home. She wondered if Clarke would ever call any other place home or if it was only meant for her family.

"So are you two going to help me at all or are you just going to stand there and look pretty?" Raven butted into their conversation trying to pull the attention back to her as she tried to hold the chair and use her screwdriver.

Just as Clarke was about to move, Lexa responded with something most unexpected, "I thought my purpose of standing here was to look pretty, no?" She asked with her serious commander face.

Clarke looked at Lexa half surprised and half confused that she would say something like that. She found that even she was having issues determining if Lexa was being serious or not. It didn't seem like something Lexa would say to begin with but then again Clarke was able to see Lexa in a whole new light being in this new camp. With the Marsh Clan, Lexa was a completely different person, a good kind, but different. However, in this moment, even knowing this 'new' Lexa, she wasn't sure how serious the commander was.

A few minutes pass with no movement from anyone before Lexa cracked a small smile, "I am only joking." She walked over to Raven, "How can I help?"

Clarke watched Lexa walk right past her to Raven with the smuggest of smiles she'd ever seen. It was as though, this type of humor was normal for her. She shook her head as she thought about getting to know all sides of Lexa. This was definitely a side she wasn't expecting from Lexa. As Clarke approached the cart, she was about to put her hands on the edge to pull herself up when a left hand appeared in front of her face. Looking up, her eyes connected with emerald ones, grabbing onto the hand she felt the strength Lexa had even while injured when she pulled Clarke up with almost no effort. "Thank you," Clarke smiled to Lexa before looking to Raven.

Lexa gave a swift nod for your welcome.

"Okay, you two can hold onto the base so that I can bolt it to the surface of the cart, then we can get onto figuring out how to put the padding on." Raven indicated as she pulled out the bolt she needed and the screw driver required for the task.

Meanwhile off to the side Indra was leaning against one of the closest trees to monitor the work being done on the cart. Indra noticed that there was definitely a change between Clarke and Lexa but didn't know if it was her place to ask or not.

Morad walked up and stood next to Indra staring toward the three on the cart. He spoke in a low voice so only Indra could hear, "The commander has indicated that she and Clarke are companions. However, I am sure she is lying. I do not want to doubt our beloved commander but since I have known her since before she was discovered as a NIghtblood, I know when she is being less than honest. Thoughts, Indra?"

Indra looked to him with a somewhat confused face before pulling her face back to straight as she did not want to show that she wasn't aware of any companionship. It was no surprise to her that Lexa and Clarke were falling for each other. She knew it from the moment the two had come back from the Pauna attack. However hearing that Lexa and Clarke were companions did not sound correct. She knew from the last time, that Lexa was a romantic, if they were going to be united, Lexa would have told her.

"Do not worry Indra, I do not expect you to confirm or deny my suspicions. I just think it is interesting that Lexa would lie about her relationship with Clarke." Morad continued to stare at the two on the cart noticing their brief touches or distant laughs. "I do know one thing. From the moment they got here and now… something has definitely changed in their relationship. Whether they weren't anything when they got here or they are just growing in their relationship, they are definitely different than when they first arrived many days ago."

Indra wanted to question Morad to get more information about the on goings here in this camp but didn't want to look like she didn't know her commander. With Lexa coming from Trikru, she and Indra had been close even before Anya had died so she knew that Lexa would most likely confide in her at some point. It was just a matter of when.

After a minute or so Indra decided to take the initiative and speak so not to look suspicious. She would not be happy if her quietness spread rumors to the other grounders in this camp. "As you said, I am not going to confirm or deny your suspicions Morad, just know that these two have been dancing around each other for some time now. If Lexa says they are companions, than that is what they are."

"Nicely played Indra, if I weren't sure of my suspicions I'd believe you. It's been nice talking to you," Morad ended before turning and walking away as though they never had the conversation in the first place.

XXXXXXXXXXX

Several hours later, the sun had gone down and the three of them were left staring at their masterpiece. The seat that Raven had borrowed from one of the old Ark control rooms was almost unrecognizable with all of the padding and cushions covering the entire chair and legs.

Raven stepped in front of them, "Should we take it out for a test run?" She asked overly excited.

"I am not riding in that thing more than I have to. It seemed to be sturdy. I am sure it is fine. If it is not, we will find out tomorrow," Lexa surmised looking at Raven before looking to Clarke, "Shall we eat?"

Clarke nodded, "Yes. Come on Raven. You must be starving."

Raven nodded, "I could eat a horse I'm so hungry."

Clarke couldn't help but to chuckle at that.

As they neared the food area, Lexa stopped Clarke and whispered, "Could you grab a plate for me?"

"Sure," Clarke responded curious to know what Lexa was up to.

Lexa walked toward Morad who was sitting a few tables away, "May we speak Morad?"

Morad looked up from his spot at the table and nodded before getting up and moving to the side with Lexa, "What can I do for you?"

"I require three to four of your warriors this night for watch up at the ridge. You know of the place I am referring?" Lexa asked knowing the answer to her question before she asked it.

He couldn't help the smile that appeared on his, "Of course." Not wanting to bud in, he chose to ignore his curiosity, "When do you need them?"

"Once we are done eating, I will be taking Clarke up there. I have but one rule for the warriors." He nodded waiting for an answer. Lexa continued, "I wish that they be close enough to protect if danger presents itself but far enough that they not be able to listen in. Either that or they not speak of what they hear. I would prefer Clarke not to know that I have warriors in the woods protecting if need be."

Morad swiftly nodded, "Yes, I will see that it is done." He noticed her turning to leave when he dropped a hand to her arm. "I'm happy for you Lexa. You deserve to be happy."

"Thank you," she couldn't help the smile that appeared on her face as she walked back to the table.

As Lexa approached the table she noticed that the seat at the head of the table was free like it often was while they had been at this camp. As she sat down, she noticed that Sierra was to her left and Clarke to her right with Raven next to Clarke.

"Oh, you're back." Clarke looked to Lexa pushing the plate she had gotten, over to Lexa. "Raven was just about to tell Sierra why she was here."

Raven smiled from the taste of the meat she just put in her mouth before answering Sierra's question, "Indra and I came here to help these two get back to our camp. We were all starting to believe that they might be dead until Le—" She paused mid-bite at her error in status before swallowing and correcting her error. "I mean the commander, sent Shay with a message indicating they were alive. So we packed up some of my tools and came here." Raven explained the quickest way she could.

Clarke looked over to Lexa and nodded her head toward Raven.

Lexa got the notion right away, "Raven, you can just call me Lexa."

"Oh… thanks. That is a lot easier to remember, thanks." Raven apologized more than necessary looking to Lexa. She knew that if it weren't so dark and if she didn't have dark skin, they would have seen her blush.

"Wait… What do you have that Lexa couldn't have done here? Her arm is pretty damaged." Sierra asked completely disregarding the whole name situation.

"We built something that should help lessen the jostling of her arm on the ride back because from my understanding riding a horse is out of the question," Raven left it as an open ended sentence. If someone wanted to add to it, they could but she didn't expect anyone would.

Lexa wasn't about to admit to a weakness so she continued to eat in silence. She did send a death glare to Sierra however when she was about to open her mouth to do just that.

Clarke couldn't help but to think about wanting to continue her conversation earlier with Sierra but wanted to talk to Raven first about her change in status with Lexa as it was hard to talk about in the open with the whole companion situation. In public they were to act like they were engaged but in their personal time were just starting to date. That was something that Clarke needed to explain to Raven. On the other hand, all she wanted to do was spend some alone time with Lexa. To say Clarke was conflicted was an understatement.

Lexa could see Clarke conflicted about something, she wasn't sure what but she could recognize that face anywhere.

Sierra on the other hand could sense the tension between the two lovers. It was clear that Raven was too focused on her food at the moment to notice the added tension but Sierra was good at recognizing that look on Lexa's face. It may have been some time since she'd seen her friend but that face never changed in all that time.

Just as Sierra was about to open her mouth, Clarke turned to Lexa, "Raven's probably tired, any idea where she would be staying tonight?" Clarke asked wanting to get Raven up to speed as soon as possible so she could spend the rest of her evening with her new favorite grounder.

"I'm not that tired, Clarke," Raven started to point out before she got a look at the stare she was getting from Clarke in that moment. "What?" She asked now that all three were staring at her.

"Raven, if you don't want to sleep, fine but wouldn't you rather know where you'll be staying so that…" Clarke was at a loss of words because she wanted to say that she didn't want Raven following her around all night so that she could have some alone time with Lexa. On the other hand, she didn't want to sound like she didn't appreciate Raven or miss her.

Raven made a face waiting for Clarke to finish her sentence but was getting a strange vibe from her.

Lexa could see the clear struggle on Clarke's face so she intervened before Raven got too curious, "Raven, Clarke and I have some training to do that is best done just the two of us. I believe what Clarke is trying to say is that she doesn't want you to be left out in the cold while she's learning."

Clarke nodded her head, "Yeah, that's what I meant."

Raven peered at Clarke hoping that she would learn soon why Clarke was acting so odd, as she spoke, "Why didn't you just say so?"

"Honestly, I've had so much training lately, it slipped my mind," Clarke responded knowing it was a lie but making it seem like it was as truthful as possible.

"Yeah, it seemed from what I saw earlier you must have been training pretty hard while here. I could see you forgetting things." Raven nodded as she tossed the rest of her food in her mouth. "Shall we get going then? I don't want to keep you from your training." She asked as she stood up to go.

Clarke got up from her seat, "Goodnight Sierra," she looked to Sierra and smiled.

"Yeah, good night Sierra, it was nice meeting you," Raven asked as she walked away with her plate wandering in an unknown direction.

"Night guys," Sierra responded with as she touched Lexa's arm to get her to look at Sierra before Lexa walked away as well.

"Yes Sierra," Lexa looked down at her friend as she watched Clarke and Raven stop a few meters away clearly waiting for her.

"You know I could have taken Raven to the tent, right?" She asked in a low voice so only Lexa could hear her.

"Sierra, Raven doesn't know about everything. I know that Clarke would rather that information come from her rather than someone else." Lexa explained to her friend.

Sierra couldn't help the smile on her face, "Wow… I never thought I'd see you like this ever again. You truly do love her don't you?"

Lexa didn't respond as she didn't want anyone to hear her answer to that for fear that someone might realize her story was a lie. Instead she just blatantly winked at Sierra to get the point across before walking away from her.

As she joined the two sky people, Lexa immediately noticed Clarke's arms crossed clearly cold from the night air. Winter was upon them and yet both of them weren't well equipped for the weather. Lexa wanted to wrap Clarke up into her arms but resisted because she didn't want to cross a line that Clarke didn't want crossed in front of Raven.

Clarke looked to Lexa, "Where are we off too?"

"She would most likely be placed in one of the guest tents close to where…" She paused for a brief moment not sure how to describe them sharing a tent before deciding to just go for it, "…our tent is."

Clarke nodded, "Cool."

Raven couldn't help but to be confused with the 'our tent' but decided that Clarke would tell her when she wanted too.

XXXXXXXXX

The walk there was a quiet one. Raven had so many questions from how they survived to how they even got this camp but she wasn't sure how to ask because this silence was clearly not there because they didn't want to talk. She knew there was more to it than that.

Lexa directed them to the tent with ease and without a single word until they arrived to the front of the tent.

Raven moved ahead of the two of them and stood at the front expecting Clarke and Lexa to say their goodbyes and leave but that wasn't the case. She turned to face Clarke, "Is there something else?"

Clarke nodded, "Uh yeah, would I be able to come in?"

"Sure…" Raven walked into the pitch darkness tent.

At first Lexa was going to stand outside before she realized that Raven wouldn't know where any of the candles are in the tent so she followed in after them. With ease Lexa walked in and picked up a few candles before walking back out and igniting the wicks on the torch just outside the tent. After she placed the candles inside the tent on the two tables to equal out the light, she was stuck at the entrance wondering if she should leave or not. "Shall, I leave you two alone or…?"

Clarke turned to Lexa, "If you would like to stay, you can."

Lexa could sense Clarke hesitation on the response so she took that as she should leave. She walked out of the tent and chose to stand outside to watch for any who might want to listen in.

Raven watched the commander leave and then back to Clarke, "What is this all about?"

Clarke let out a breath she wasn't aware she was holding in, "Okay… I wanted to speak to you just in case someone here asked you about mine and Lexa's companionship."

"Companionship? What does that mean?" Raven asked confused from the look on Clarke's face and the term itself.

"Without going into great detail, Lexa made a choice before we got here to tell the people of this clan that she and are essentially engaged to be married." Clarke stared at Raven to try and gauge her reaction.

Her mouth opened and closed a few times before she finally asked, "Wait, what? You and her are engaged?" She pointed to the closed tent door. "Are… Are you kidding me? You two aren't even dating, let alone close enough for that st-"

"Raven stop!" Clarke cut Raven off from her rant just as she looked like she was about to go outside the tent and have some words with Lexa. "This isn't a real engagement."

Raven's face went from a mixture of angry/confused to just confused within seconds, "I am so lost. First you say you're engaged; now you say you aren't. Which is it Clarke?"

"Raven…" Clarke realized she was going to have to go into some detail as this vagueness was not working for the mechanic. "…all clans have their own look on love. Lexa said that this clan is about claiming power within a significant other not about love, whereas we are about falling in love. She wanted to protect me from that." Clarke could tell she finally had Raven's attention and it looked like things were starting to click. "So she chose to tell the leader that we are to be united or in our term married so that I wouldn't have to worry about someone trying to claim me." She paused for a moment to make sure that sunk in. "I'm telling you this because I needed you to understand why she and I are lying about our relationship."

"So… you two aren't together?" Raven asked thinking back to that moment she witnessed back on the training grounds.

If it wasn't so dark she was sure Raven would have seen her blush from the girl in love smile that appeared on her face after Raven asked her about Lexa. On one hand she wanted to keep it to herself because she wanted to talk to Lexa first but then she realized that Sierra knew, why not one her friends as well. "Well, actually she and I aren't just friends anymore. We aren't engaged but we're testing the waters." Clarke explained vaguely but was sure she got the point across.

Raven busted out a smile in excitement, "I knew it! You two seemed a little chummy at the training grounds today. I was sure there had to be some fire between you guys. Even before that, you two seemed close at camp too." Then a question hit her, "Wait has this been going on since before you guys fell into the river?"

Clarke shook her head, "No, this is a recent development that happened here."

Raven continued to smile, "Well I'm happy for you buddy." She pulled Clarke into a hug to show that she was happy for her. "Wait, so are you two actually training or was that code for, meet me in the woods for some 'extracurricular activities'?" Raven used air quotes to put emphasis on the words implying they were using code for sex.

Clarke chuckled at Raven's childish behavior, "I'm not aware of any training but for your information, Lexa and I haven't taken our relationship to that level yet."

"Yet, being the operative word Clarke," Raven wiggled her eyebrows for extra effect.

"Okay, I'm leaving now. You're getting weird." She turned to leave and just as she was about to exit she turned back to Raven. "Remember, this is between you and us, oh and I suppose Sierra knows too. Everyone else is under the impression that she and I are engaged to be married. Got it?"

"Yeah yeah yeah, I got it Clarke. Don't be so worried. Go have fun with your lady," Raven reassured Clarke as she practically shoved her out of the tent.

Clarke stumbled out almost crashing into Lexa in the process.

Lexa heard Clarke exit out the tent and had been mid turn as Clarke stumbled out of the tent. She easily grabbed onto Clarke preventing her from completely falling on the ground. "Are you alright?" She asked a tad worried that Raven didn't take it well.

Clarke nodded, "Yes, Raven just got a little excited is all."

Lexa wasn't sure about that answer but accepted it when Clarke wouldn't expand on it.

Once Clarke felt sturdy enough, she looked into emerald eyes. "So, what do you have planned?"

"What makes you so sure I have something planned?" Lexa asked not giving anything away.

Clarke turned to walk away from Raven's tent so that she couldn't listen in. "Lexa as grateful as I am that you helped me to explain why I needed to get Raven alone, I don't think you would have suggested it without a plan in mind. That's just not your style."

"I am not sure if I like that you are starting to learn my tells, Clarke but you are right. If you are up to it, I thought you and I could spend our final night here in one of my favorite places here." Lexa explained as she wrapped her left arm around Clarke pulling her close.

Clarke looked over at Lexa curiosity in her eyes, "So we're going to the waterfall? Isn't it a little cold for that?"

Lexa smiled, "Not the waterfall. I have another place I like to go to think. I think you will like it."

"Alright, I trust you. Let's go." Clarke responded with excitement in her voice.

XXXXXXXX

About thirty minutes later, after climbing up a rather steep hill, Clarke and Lexa arrive at a ridge. Looking out, Clarke felt like she was on top of the world. She could see the distant snowy mountains where she suspected the Ice Nation resided to the tops of trees that lead toward their joint camp.

"Wow…" Clarke was speechless looking at everything before her.

Lexa stood a few steps behind Clarke wanting to ensure the sky leader took it all in before she bridged the gap between them pressing her front against Clarke's back, wrapping her arms around as she placed her chin on Clarke's left shoulder. "I wanted you to see the world you live in now from a different perspective." She felt Clarke's hands cover her arms. "You have only ever seen it from the ground, where war occurs. From here, all you see is the beauty of the ground. I was a little unsure because of us slipping off the cliff but I decided that the beauty of this outweighed any fear you might have especially in the moonlight."

Clarke turned in Lexa's arms and stared at her with a knowing smile, "You amaze me." She leaned into Lexa connecting their lips together in a sweet, caring kiss. One not filled with passion but filled with love. She wasn't ready to admit such a thing but wanted to make sure that Lexa knew how much she cared that she would do something like this for her. Clarke was the one to pull back, "Every time I think I have you figured out, you do something like this."

Lexa smiled, "I would do anything for you. I hope you know that."

Clarke knew she was blushing and was happy for the moonlight and the fallen torch being the only forms of light as she was sure Lexa couldn't see it. "I have to ask one thing Lexa."

"What is it?" Lexa asked staring into blue eyes that looked more like space than they did ocean in this lighting.

"We walked all the way up here to just look? So does that mean we're leaving now, or?" Clarke asked not wanting to leave just yet but also knew that staying was probably not an option.

Lexa shook her head, "No." She pulled back from Clarke and moved out of the way for Clarke to take in the fire pit that was well used as well as the additional furs on the ground near the fire pit.

"Wait… you did this for me?" Clarke asked feeling a tad shocked that Lexa would go through this much trouble. "When did you even do this?"

"I would like to take credit for this one but it was actually Sierra who suggested this. She and I brought up the furs earlier this morning after you went off to train with Morad. This was planned before I knew it would be our last night here. That fact just made it even more so special," Lexa explained as she kneeled down and picked up some of the twigs next to the fire pit to make a tee pee with the moss. She made a mental note to thank the warriors that Morad sent to keep watch as they were obviously the ones who were kind enough to collect not only twigs but logs as well for the fire.

Clarke sat down next to Lexa on one of the furs crossing her legs, "I guess I'll have to thank Sierra for her great idea."

Lexa got the fire going moments later and added a few more twigs before moving to sit on the fur Clarke was sitting on. "Come here," Lexa moved next to Clarke spreading out her legs on either side of Clarke using her hands to motion to Clarke to come to her. "If you lay back on me, you can take in the sights while still being warm."

Clarke smiled, "Good idea." She did as was suggested leaning back into Lexa, her head resting back on Lexa's collarbone.

Lexa moved to grab the other nearby fur and with Clarke's help; they were able to pull the fur over the both of them, most of it covering Clarke. She wrapped her arms around Clarke and placed a kiss on Clarke's left temple. "Feeling any warmer?"

"Much, thank you," Clarke looked up to Lexa and smiled. "So is this where you take all of the women you date?" She couldn't help but to chuckle thinking about it.

Lexa shook her head not realizing Clarke couldn't see, "No, I only bring those that I see a future with here. Costia was the only one, until now."

Clarke felt warmth from that comment alone. "You really see a future with me? Even with the looming challenge."

This time Lexa chose not to use physical movement to indicate an answer and instead used her words, "It is a rare concept on the ground. Thinking about one's future is not something we often do because we never know when our time will end. It might be tomorrow or it might be many moons from now but with you, I feel like you and I could climb mountains together, tame animals, I feel like we could conquer any task we come across. So yes, I see a future with you. I have from the moment, you made me think differently after we got away from the Pauna." Lexa explained making every word count ensuring that Clarke felt what she was saying. "In situations like that, I have often not taken the route you did. I have let many warriors die so that I might live but you chose to save me. My whole world changed in that moment."

"Well, I did need you because you were the only grounder that didn't want to kill my people, so I wouldn't read too much into it," Clarke chuckled trying to lighten the mood.

Lexa smiled, "Are you saying there was not a single part of you that wanted me alive for more than strategic purposes?"

Clarke thought for a little longer than necessary to give extra effect, "Nope. I don't think so." She laughed some more before leaning forward to turn to her left to face Lexa using her left hand as support. "Lexa, I knew you and I were growing closer from that moment. I do, but you have to understand that I was still dealing with what I did to Finn so it was hard for me to distinguish someone caring for me as more than a friend or not. She paused to let that sink into Lexa before moving on. "When you kissed me, everything was put into perspective for me. All these feelings that I wasn't quite aware that I was feeling all came rushing out. I didn't push you away at first because I got lost in this moment that for one second I wasn't a leader, I was just a girl that was falling for the grounder leader. I pushed you away because I didn't know what I was feeling but now I do." She brought her right hand up to cup Lexa's face, "I want you."

Lexa gave a small smile before she used her left hand to pull Clarke's face closer by pulling on her right arm, their lips connecting in a loving kiss. They disconnected a few moments later leaning their foreheads together.

Clarke pulled back not needing support from her hands to look Lexa in the eyes, "I just want to know that I see a future with you too and as much as I want to consummate our relationship in this moment, below these stars. You have no idea how much I want to." Clarke couldn't help the smirk that appeared on her face as she imagined the very fit commander naked. "I want to wait until after the challenge."

Lexa wet her lips with her tongue still feeling the effects from the kiss, "I understand Clarke. I did not bring you up here for that reason. I brought you up here so that you can see the beauty in the world."

"I see the beauty, right here," She placed her right hand over Lexa's heart, "In you and how you see the world. That's enough for me. As long as I have you…"

"If you keep talking like this Clarke, I will not be able to keep my promise to you," Lexa admitted losing a grip on her inhibitions as she looked into Clarke's eyes. "You need to change the subject quick."

Clarke smiled and turned around to lean back into Lexa's embrace bringing the fur back over the two of them, "Costia, what was she like?"

That question took Lexa aback; she wasn't expecting such a question. She did her best not to sound fazed, "Well… I think you would have liked her. She was smart and brave. She liked to live each day like it was our last…"

Clarke listened intently to everything that Lexa had to say about Costia and from listening she couldn't help but to think about that moment in the cave. Then she began to feel guilty for keeping a part of that conversation from Lexa. "I have to tell you something."

Lexa was pulled from going down memory lane, "Yes."

"When we were in the cave before we came here, remember how I told you that you had hallucinated me as Costia?" Clarke asked turning her head to look up at Lexa.

Lexa moved her head a bit to look down at Clarke, "I do, why?"

Clarke turned to look back out at the bluey darkness with stars shining, "While you were hallucinating you told me, as Costia, that your heart belonged to me, Clarke. I didn't want to say anything then because I didn't know how you were going to react. I thought that you should know now just in case I don't get a chance to tell you before the challenge."

"What I said was true. My heart does belong to you, it has for a while," Lexa responded to easily with no hesitation.

"So you're not mad that I kept that from you?" Clarke asked not sure what Lexa's answer would be.

"I have no reason to be mad at you Clarke. It is the truth. Nothing more," Lexa tried her best to ease Clarke's worry.

Clarke relaxed in Lexa's arms, "Good. That's one more thing I no longer have to worry about."

"Here, I'm going to move," Lexa waited for Clarke to lean forward so that she didn't let Clarke fall and hit her head once more. She then moved to lie next to Clarke's right pulling herself under the furs.

Clarke then slid her butt down so that when she lay down she would be at equal sight of Lexa. She then noticed that at the end of the fur where you head now lie; she could feel a fluffy bump under like a pillow. She looked right at Lexa who turned to stare at her, "So this is your idea of not getting me into bed?" She couldn't help the smile that appeared on her face when she saw the look on Lexa's face.

Lexa looked at Clarke and realized the implication. She was about to get out of the furs when she noticed the smile on Clarke's face.

"Your face is priceless right now." Clarke laughed before she leaned it to give her a kiss. "I know you must be cold."

Lexa shook her head, "I wanted to be able to look up at the stars with you. It was hard to do in the position I was in." She so desperately wanted to keep contact with Clarke but also wanted extra lift under her head but with her right arm, she was definitely not going to be able to support her head. So she chose to scratch the extra support and used her left hand to grasp Clarke's right hand. As she went to, she quickly noticed Clarke wasn't next to her. "Clarke-"

Clarke appeared to Lexa's right, "Hey, move over. I could see you clearly conflicted probably because of your arm so move over."

Lexa let go of the breath she was holding for fear someone had gotten past Morad's guards and snatched Clarke right in front of her, before she slid over on the fur to allow Clarke to fit.

"Before you say anything, I'm sure I will be warm enough," Clarke reassured Lexa as she moved closer to Lexa trying to get some of her body heat.

Lexa stretched out her right arm allowing Clarke to move into her space to curl close but allowing Clarke to still be able to look up at the stars. She then positioned her left hand to give extra support under her head. "I will keep you warm if you stay this close to me," Lexa smiled.

Clarke couldn't help but to let out a yawn getting lost in the warmth and the darkness around them as the fire started to dwindle. "Should we be heading back soon?"

"If you want to leave, we can but we can stay up here all night if you'd like," Lexa left as an open ended suggestion. Clarke could either take it or leave it.

Clarke pulled herself up on her both of her elbows to look at Lexa's face confused, "How could we stay here? One of us would have to stay awake and I know you. You'd never sleep while I took a shift so you'd be staying awake all night."

"Clarke, I told you I had planned for tonight." Lexa tried to reassure Clarke by running her right hand along Clarke's left shoulder. When then didn't work, she added, "There are warriors in the woods around us keeping watch. I have it covered but if you would prefer we go back to our tent, we can do that too."

Clarke relaxed once again, "No, if we can stay. I'd rather stay." She responded with as she leaned back down onto Lexa's arm and curled into her. This time she didn't look up to the stars. In fact she pulled herself even closer by resting her head near Lexa's collarbone and wrapping her right arm and leg over Lexa's body and legs.

Lexa smiled, "Good. It will be far more difficult for us to have alone time once we are back unless you do not mind others knowing of our relationship." When she got no response she craned her head to look at Clarke's eyes and could see that her eyes were shut. Lexa smiled, "Goodnight Clarke," She whispered before she looked back up at the stars. She couldn't help but to think that the stars that she had stared at any night she could, had given her someone she never could have dreamed would like her back.

Clarke.


	22. Day 10/11

Chapter 22

_**DAY 10** _

Lexa slowly opened her eyes feeling the weight of Clarke partially on top of her. She turned her head to her left noticing the fire was out but could see the sun peeking out in the distance. It was morning. All she wanted was to spend one morning with Clarke alone, with no cause for alarm, no need to awaken. Just lay in bed all day long. One day. That's all she wanted. She used her left hand to move a strand of blonde hair from Clarke's face before touching the sky leader's hand running her fingers up Clarke's arm to coax the sleeping beauty awake.

Clarke hummed in her sleep before adding, "That feels nice." Her eyes opened up soon after. Quite quickly she noticed what Lexa did a moment ago. The fire was cold and the sun coming up. She sighed as she pulled herself off of Lexa sitting back on her butt. "I guess we have to leave," she stated feeling defeated that this sweet moment was over.

Lexa nodded in defeat as she leaned up on her elbows, "Yes, we must leave." She made no movement like she wanted to leave. "Come here first," Lexa beckoned Clarke closer.

She knew exactly what Lexa wanted in this moment, Clarke wasted no time leaning forward on her hands and knees to connect her lips with Lexa's. Getting lost in the moment, she didn't even realize that Lexa leaned back pulling Clarke with her. Clarke didn't hold back as she allowed their bodies to meld together and their lips collided in a passion. All inhibitions that she had the night before went off the ridge, and she was lost in the moment. Lost in the feel of Lexa's lips on hers, to the way Lexa ran her fingers along her sides and back. It created quite the heat in her belly.

Lexa took advantage of Clarke being lost and used her strength in her left arm and what she had left in her right to roll Clarke over away from the cold fire pit. She was careful to make sure Clarke didn't bash her head into the hard rocks in the motion. Her right hand took the brunt of that which probably wasn't the smartest of things as she felt a jolt of pain run up her arm but she pushed it away. Her left leg falling between Clarke's legs but her body was lying on her right side staring down at Clarke. "You are so beautiful," Lexa let out barely as a whisper as she traced Clarke's features.

Clarke closed her eyes as Lexa moved down to re-connect their lips once more. This time it wasn't rushed. It was more about showing each other what they meant to each other.

Lexa pulled back to look at Clarke once more, "How I wish this moment could go on forever…. And as much as I would like to make them wait for us, we do need to leave if we wish to get back home at an earlier time." With reluctance, Lexa moved to stand up putting out her left hand to help Clarke up.

"Yes, I suppose you're right," Clarke accepted the help but as soon as she got up she used the momentum to recapture Lexa's lips once more. It was a brief kiss but showed just how much Clarke did not want to leave and go back to their lives. Once she pulled back, she stayed in Lexa's arms, "Promise me one thing, right here, right now."

"Anything…" Lexa waited patiently.

Clarke looked away for a moment gathering her courage before looking back to emerald eyes, "Promise me that if I die-"

Lexa pulled from Clarke's arms in frustration, "Clarke, we've been over this! You cannot go into-" Clarke cut her off as she felt a pang in her heart from the thought of losing Clarke.

"I know what you're going to say. That I can't go into the challenge thinking like this. I know that. Just hear me out," Clarke left as more of a statement than a question.

Lexa huffed in annoyance at having to hear of this once again, "Fine."

"Promise me that if I die, that you will move on from me." Clarke could feel tears building up in her eyes. "Promise me that you will find happiness again. Promise me that you'll have a family. I need to know Lexa, that you won't get yourself into a situation that puts your life in danger." A tear fell from her right eye, "Promise me?"

Lexa could see the truth in ocean blue eyes and couldn't deal with the thought of losing Clarke. She turned her head to look away, tears building up in her eyes, she tried to hide her sadness behind determination, "I can't do that." Lexa finally looked back at Clarke. "I can't think about you dying. So no, I can't promise that. I can't promise you that I will move on if you die because I can't think like that. Living on the ground we do not know when our time will end so we try not to think about what might cause our death. So I can't promise you something that I do not believe in. I want to go into that challenge with an open mind and so should you." Lexa wiped her tears away with both hands. "Even the smallest shred of doubt can kill you Clarke. You need to be confident in your abilities. If you live, then you live. If you die…" She shook her head not being able to finish the sentence. Once she found her strength again, she placed her hands on Clarke's shoulders, "Listen, I know that you need to make sure everyone will be okay but I can't. I hope you understand."

Clarke nodded not wanting to push the topic any further. Agreeing to something she needed to know right now, was better than them ending their perfect date on a bad note. Wanting to change the subject, Clarke picked up the tree necklace hanging around her neck, "Do you want this back?"

Lexa looked at Clarke confused, "Why would I want that back?"

"Lexa, this was a symbol of our 'companionship' here in this camp, our fake companionship. When we get back home, do you want this back?" Clarke asked trying to gauge Lexa's look but was confused by the look and equally as confused by the response.

"No," Lexa shook her head from side to side. "You can keep it."

Clarke looked at Lexa confused, "But I thought this was something that only a companion gets?"

"Clarke, up until we got here, I had forgotten about it. Is it important, yes, but I have other, more personable things back home that I would give to someone I wanted to be united to." She smiled at the memory of things she could give to Clarke.

Clarke smiled, "Then I'm going to keep it. Maybe it'll channel you through me when I fight Cyrus." She laughed at the idea.

Lexa couldn't help to widen her smile, "If you say so Clarke. Now we really should be going. They are surely wondering where we are."

As they left, Clarke and Lexa picked up the furs and headed toward the hill they came up the day before.

XXXXXXXXXXX

"Where are they?!" Raven asked to no one in particular irritated that they'd been waiting over an hour for Clarke and Lexa.

"Oh I'm sure they are taking in this beautiful morning with some extra activities," Sierra winked at Raven to get her point across.

Raven smiled, "Wait, you know too?" She asked before realization took over, "That's right, Clarke did mention that last night. You know something I don't know?"

Sierra leaned in to Raven to whisper, "I helped Lexa set up a little romantic getaway. I wouldn't be surprised if they didn't show for some time."

"What was that Sierra?"

Sierra's eyes went wide as her body straightened up turning around slowly to face none other than Lexa, "What? I didn't say anything," she responded nervously.

Lexa couldn't help the smirk that appeared on her face, "I do not believe you but that is okay because I will miss you my friend." She walked over to Sierra to give her a hug.

Sierra accepted the hug wishing that she could have more time with Lexa and even with Clarke but she knew that they had to leave. She turned to Clarke, and pulled her into a hug, "I will miss you, Clarke. Make sure you make him suffer," she ordered as she pulled back to look Clarke in the eyes.

Clarke gave a swift nod, "Understood."

Sierra smiled that Clarke understood her humor.

Aleksy, Warwick and Clyde walk up to Clarke, "Hey, Clarke."

Clarke turned to the three of them, "Hey, guys. I'm sorry we won't be able to do any training. I was really looking forward to learning from you guys."

Aleksy shrugged his shoulders, "We know you will kick ass regardless of what we could have taught you. However, we have decided that we would like to be there for you when it happens so when is the challenge?"

Clarke looked at them unsure before looking to Lexa that was a bit ahead of her talking to Indra, "I'll have to ask Lexa." She walked over to Lexa with her new grounder buddies following her. "Hey, Lexa?" Clarke called to get her attention.

Lexa turned to face Clarke, "Yes."

"Uh, these guys were wondering when the challenge was going to be. I wasn't sure what to say since technically it should have been a few days ago but with us being here, that was not the case." Clarke explained even though she knew Lexa was well aware of when the challenge was supposed to be.

"Well, since the challenge should have already occurred it will probably occur once we get back. It should take us a day and a half for us to get back home. So the challenge will probably occur the day after. I suppose that means two days from now." Lexa explained flatly not giving away her feelings about it at all.

Warwick looked shocked, "I guess we are coming with you guys then." He turned to the other two, "Right?"

Aleksy and Clyde nodded in unison, "Right."

Clarke looked at them a little confused, "Wait, you guys want to come see me fight, why?"

It was Clyde's turn to speak this time, "Clarke, we have watched you grow as a fighter. We have helped you learn and we want see this through. We want to be there when you kill him because we know you have it in you to do so."

Aleksy moved past Clyde, "Yeah, when you go home, there will be people there that have not watched you become this badass fighter. They will go into that fight worried for your life but we won't. We will go into that fight knowing that you can do it. You need that. You need that support. The commander has seen what you can do; she will be there for you. You need more than that. We want to be there for you."

"Wait a minute…." Sierra barged into the conversation. "Did I just hear what I heard?" She didn't wait for anyone to answer because she knew what she heard she just wanted to add extra effect. "If these three are going, than so am I."

Morad who was standing not too far away heard the outburst and came over, "Sierra, you are one of the healers, you cannot just leave."

"Key word, ONE of the healers," Sierra used her pointer finger to give extra emphasis on one. "Clarke has become a close friend. If these three, that are just her training buddies, get to go, then I think I should too. I would hate for today to be the last time I see Clarke." She leaned over to Clarke, "Not that I think you're going to die."

"Of course not," Clarke whispered back.

"I too have watched Clarke grow as a fighter. She is also someone I would call a friend. I think I deserve to be there. Like Clyde said, she needs that support. She needs people on her side that know how good she is at fighting. Plus, if the four of us go, we can help her continue training in secret before the challenge." Sierra explained looking at Morad more than anyone else. He was the one she needed to convince and from the look on his face, she might have done just that.

Morad sighed, "You have made your point Sierra. You can go with them."

"YES!" Sierra shouted a little too loudly. "What? I can't be excited?" She looked at all the confused looks around her.

"That was taking it a tad far Sierra," Lexa shook her head at Sierra.

"If you three want to go, you are going to have to go get some additional horses. You too Sierra," Morad pointed out to the three warriors and healer.

Aleksy, Warrick and Clyde nod and run off toward the stables.

"Nah, I don't need a horse, I'm riding with these three," Sierra nodded as she crossed her arms.

Lexa shook her head from side to side, "No, you need a horse Sierra. You only want to ride in the cart so you can make fun of me. I will not have that."

"Lexa, even if I'm on a horse I am going to ride next to the cart so regardless you'll have to deal with me," Sierra pointed out the error in Lexa's suggestion.

Lexa huffed, "Fine, ride with us." Without showing any issues, Lexa hopped up on the cart putting out her left hand to let Clarke up.

Clarke moved from next to Sierra to the end of the cart reaching for Lexa's hand. Just like the day before, Lexa pulled her up with no difficulty. This time around though Clarke wasn't going to let the sheer strength go unacknowledged, "You are incredibly strong, Lexa." She stated looking Lexa right in the eyes.

"Uh, can you two move so that others can get on the cart?" Raven asked frustrated that Clarke and Lexa were able to cover such a large amount of space.

Clarke let go of Lexa and moved around the chair on the cart to the front.

Lexa did the same except she kneeled down and then sat back in the chair that was sitting on the floor of the cart. Instantly she felt silly. She felt like a piece of her overall presence of strength was gone. In this moment, she'd rather push through the pain of riding on a horse rather than doing this but she also knew that Clarke might frown upon that.

Clarke pulled herself to sit next to Lexa's right to help with her arm if need be, "Are you okay?" She whispered so that only Lexa could hear.

"I feel like a fool, Clarke," Lexa didn't look at Clarke, she looked straight ahead feeling frustrated that she was put in this situation.

Sierra and Raven followed suit and helped each other get the back part of the cart lifted and secured to the sides of the cart before moving to sit against it. Sierra wanted so much to sit in front of Lexa and make fun of her but even she knew that would be crossing a line. So instead Raven and Sierra sat next to each other and allowed Clarke to be the one to sit near Lexa. They both knew Clarke was probably the only person to be able to convince her to stay in the chair.

Aleksy, Warrick and Clyde ride up behind the cart a few moments later as Indra on her horse moved from the front to where Lexa was. "Commander, we are ready to go."

Lexa gave a swift nod that they can go.

Moments later, everyone was moving and waving goodbye to those in Morad's camp.

Once they were clear of the camp, Clarke turned to Lexa, "How's your arm?"

Lexa couldn't stay angry at Clarke for making her sit in this contraption since she couldn't feel any pain in her arm so far. "It feels fine Clarke," she whispered back to Clarke.

XXXXXXXXXXXXX

Twelve hours later, the sun was starting to fade into darkness as they stopped their party in an area not too far from the main path. Aleksy, Clyde and Warrick went off hunting taking Clarke with them. While everyone else set up their sleeping furs near a couple fires set up.

Aleksy walked up to Clarke behind them and spoke in a quieter voice, "Okay, since we know you are not trained in how to use a bow and arrow, and tracking won't help you in the challenge. We want you to use this time to feel the earth and move with quick movements staying as quiet as possible. Sound good?"

Clarke nodded, "Yeah. I can help track as well."

Warrick smiled, "I told you guys she would be useful on this hunt." He put out his fist waiting for her to bump it.

Clarke did as he did and bumped her fist on his.

They all looked around for a trail for them to follow when Clarke noticed some prints in the dirt that she recognized. "This way," she directed those closest and pointed for those a little ways from her. She did as they suggested, she moved in the grass and dirt as quiet as possible to the point she felt like she was one with the earth. As she followed the broken branches and the footprints, she bounced from foot to foot. A part of her almost wanted to climb up into the trees but something held her back from doing that.

All of a sudden, Clarke stopped raising her hand to stop everyone as she pointed off in the distance, "Look, over there," she pointed for Warrick to see.

Warrick couldn't help the grin that appeared on his face as he moved a tad closer before reaching for an arrow and stretching his bow. Seconds later, a cry from the two-faced deer was heard before it slumped on the ground in a pile of fur and meat.

They all meet up at the animal when Warrick spoke, "Okay, Clarke, Aleksy, you two take the animal back to camp and we'll look for some additional food."

Clarke and Aleksy nodded before Aleksy picked up a log and Clarke used twine to tie the legs to the log so that they could carry it easier. Once it was strong enough, they picked it up and made their way back to camp.

About an hour or so later, everyone was back in camp eating the food the hunters had brought back including the berries that Warrick and Clyde had collected.

Clarke was sitting in front of a fire with Lexa, Sierra, Raven Warrick, Clyde and Aleksy. They were telling everyone about how Clarke was able to find the deer with not much help. However, Clarke could tell something was up with Lexa and didn't want to ask in front of everyone else. So she waited. She waited for a better time to talk to Lexa.

As darkness fully took over the skies, Indra came over to ask Lexa a question, "Commander, who do you want to take watch first?"

Lexa looked up to Indra, "I will take first watch. You get some sleep Indra."

"Yes, commander," Indra nodded and made her way back toward the fire pit she had set up her furs to sleep on.

Clarke overheard the conversation and got up from her furs to sit next to Lexa.

"Clarke, you should be resting. The challenge is coming and you need to preserve your strength. Others can stand watch," Lexa whispered so not to wake anyone around them at other fires.

Clarke looked over to Lexa who was staring back at her, "Lexa, this might surprise you but I want to spend as much time with you as I can before the challenge." She placed her left hand on Lexa's right knee. "I can't thank you enough for training me, and helping me to become the fighter that I am now. Before we fell into that river, I didn't think I had even the tiniest of chances to beat Cyrus. Now… Now I have a chance, a really good chance. That's because of you. You are the reason that I feel stronger, and faster." She let that sink into Lexa before she continued. "But there is still a chance that in thirty six hours, my life could end. So if you are awake, I am awake. If you are sleeping, I am sleeping because I don't want to waste any time I could have with you. So no, I'm not going to rest, I'm going to stand watch with you."

Lexa couldn't help the smile that appeared on her face as she reached to entwine her right hand with Clarke's left hand, "Clarke…." She felt some residual pain from the movement but she pushed it back because she needed the contact with Clarke. "You make my world so difficult."

Clarke scrunched up her eyebrows in confusion, "What?"

"As the commander, there are certain things that I must always follow, certain things that I should not succumb to but with you… It is like I do not have control over things anymore. From the moment I became commander, I was told love is weakness and I had to witness what the Ice Nation did to Costia so I vowed that I would not love again. You changed that belief for me. It was like waking up for the first time. Love is not the weakness that I had always believed it was." She trailed off letting Clarke take what she was saying in. "When you come to Polis with me, you will get to see what my world consists of. That is if you want to come."

"Of course I want to come to Polis with you. When I beat Cyrus, I will come with you to Polis," Clarke purposely used the words she used to see what Lexa's reaction would be. When she got a mixture of both confusion and surprise Clarke continued. "Lexa, even though I think it's going to be a tough fight, I think I have a shot at beating him. I've already decided that I'm going to train in secret so that Cyrus can't see how good of a fighter I've become. That way when I get in the ring, he doesn't have high defenses."

"I wish I could help train you more," Lexa admitted feeling defeated because of her injuries. "I know that you have grown as a fighter but if you die… A part of me will blame myself because I was not the one that was training you from start to finish. I cannot say for sure that you are ready because of my arm." She could feel tears stinging her eyes.

"Lexa," Clarke turned her entire body to look Lexa in the eyes. "Look at me," she watched Lexa turn her head to face Clarke. "You are the reason I am as good as I am because you believed in me. You believed that I could learn in this short amount of time. When I doubted myself, you were there telling me that I could do it. It was you teaching me what you could with your injuries; it was you believing in me. Even now, whenever I talk about the idea that maybe I'll die, you shut me down. That's all on you. If it was up to me, I might have given up by now but you wouldn't let me. You'll never let me give up. Lexa, I am the fighter I am because of you. If I die… It won't be because of you. It'll be because I wasn't a good enough fighter."

Lexa turned to fully face Clarke, "Clarke, you are a good enough fighter. Do not ever believe that you are not good enough. You are." She paused to wipe a tear that fell from Clarke's cheek. "You are to me. Do not let anyone convince you otherwise."

Clarke let go of Lexa's hand to wipe the tears from her eyes, "Look at us. Why do we always get so emotional?" She asked with a smile on her face.

Lexa did the same and wiped the tears from her eyes as she smiled at the lighter comment, "It is because of this impending challenge, the fear that our time together is fleeting. I am happy about one thing though."

"What is it?" Clarke asked curious to know where Lexa's mind was at.

"Even if our time might be short, I am happy that you told me how you feel. I could not have watched you go into that challenge without knowing if you felt the same or not. Thank you for telling me," Lexa took this moment to lean in capture Clarke's lips with her own. A few seconds later, Lexa pulled back to lean her forehead against Clarke's for a brief moment before she pulled back wanting to not fall off of her stump.

"I don't think I could imagine my life right now without you not knowing so I'm glad I told you too. If I wouldn't have been able to spend even these last few days with you knowing how I feel, it wouldn't have been the same. I think I might have even been a bit more distracted in the challenge wondering if you and I could have been anything." She stopped speaking for a moment to find the courage to say what she wanted to say next, "How about we stop thinking about what might happen in the challenge? If I die, I die, if I live, we can see what our relationship can become. Let's think about the fact that I…" She trailed off unsure if she wanted to admit what she'd been feeling for the longest time or not.

Lexa could feel Clarke's hesitation so she did the only thing she could think of to try and comfort Clarke. She entwined her fingers with Clarke's. "What is it you want to tell me?"

Clarke felt some of her nervousness leave her body as Lexa ran her thumbs against Clarke's hands. She let go of a breath she wasn't aware she was holding in, "I was imagining this in a more romantic setting but you and I don't seem to have many of those as of late so I'll just say it."

Lexa nodded, "Okay."

"Lexa…" She trailed off looking down at their joined hands and couldn't help but feel at home. In this moment, she realized that Lexa was home for her. Home wasn't a place. It wasn't where her family or friends were. It was the grounder leader in front of her. Her whole world was right in front of her and she couldn't wait to spend every moment in their future together. "I love you. I have for a while now."

Lexa's smile grew in the biggest smile Clarke had ever seen the Commander show before, "I love you too, Clarke."

"You do?" Clarke asked feeling like her question might be a dumb one but wanting to know anyways.

Lexa nodded, "I do. If I am being honest, Clarke, I have known since I first met you. Since you walked into my tent and I met the person that killed so many of people so easily. To say that I was conflicted to go to war with you was an understatement."

"How could you have known that quickly?" Clarke asked confused that she could love so quickly.

"You are known among my people as Wanheda, commander of death, because whenever you find an obstacle, you overcome it. When I sent three hundred of my people to kill you and your people, you burned them alive. Then when the mountain took your people, you set out to get them back. Once again, you defeated your enemy. Sure, did I help, yes but both of those times, would not have occurred if not for you. I came to your people with warriors from the twelve clans not just to wipe you out but to meet this Wanheda. To see that you and I are the same, young leaders, it was like lightning had struck and I knew that you could be the one. So when you came to me with an offer, I jumped at it because it meant a way to keep you alive. A way for me to get to know you… I never could have imagined our relationship becoming what it has but I did know there was something there right from the start." Lexa explained with such ease.

Clarke melted at Lexa's words, "Why did we have to be on watch duty?" She stated more so than asked because she wanted to show Lexa just how much she loved her.

Lexa smiled, "Clarke, as much as I want to be with you, I would not do it here. You deserve better than that. I want to show you what love is, when there is no more fear of death."

"Yes, I want that too." Clarke admitted so easily.

Without warning, Lexa stood up and put out a hand for Clarke to help her get up, "I need to do a patrol, if you would like to come."

Clarke nodded, "Yes." She grabbed ahold of Lexa's hand and stood up. "You just want a distraction."

Lexa smiled, "Yes but I also need to do a patrol at some point. Now is probably the best time."

Clarke chuckled, "Yes, now is a good time."

They turned and Lexa lead Clarke in the direction they needed to go. While on the patrol, they both kept quiet so that they could see any possible dangers before going back to camp and sitting at the fire. Conversation was here and there until Indra awoke to take the next watch.

With their new found love reveal, they both didn't care much if people learned of their relationship as they took advantage of sleeping in the same furs once again. Lexa gave some speech about how Clarke would stay warmer if they use their body heat but Clarke knew it was because she wanted an excuse to stay close to her.

XXXXXXXXXXXXX

_**DAY 11** _

The day began similar to the day before except Lexa was found waking up before anyone else or so she thought. As she opened her eyes, she noticed quite quickly that Clarke was not in her arms. Panic overcame her that somehow another clan had taken yet another love away from her. She practically threw the furs off of herself before noticing Clarke in the distance feeding the horses.

She let out a huge sigh of relief as she stood up and walked over to Clarke, "Good morning."

Clarke turned from the horses to look at Lexa, "Good morning." She could see a certain look on Lexa's face and felt the need to question it, "Are you alright? You seem off."

"Yeah, I am fine." Watching Clarke feed the horses brought on a hunger she hadn't felt in some time, "Hey, I was wondering if maybe you would like to steal a few moments alone with me," Lexa smirked hinting at what she was referring too.

Clarke moved into Lexa's space wrapping her arms around the commander, "I would love to but... we have been waiting for you to awaken so that we can leave." Clarke held back a laugh as she saw the look on Lexa's face. "That's why I'm feeding the horses because they've packed up everything and I have nothing to do except this."

Lexa finally took in her surroundings and noticed everyone just sitting around, some on their horses, others sitting by one of the remaining fires that are still lit. She looked back at Clarke, "Why did no one wake me?"

Clarke shrugged her shoulders, "I was going to but Indra said that no one is allowed to wake the commander so I didn't."

"Well, she is right about that but you do have special privileges over everyone else," Lexa smiled wanting so much to just kiss Clarke but didn't know if Clarke would be alright with her openly showing their relationship.

Clarke nodded in agreement, "Special privileges, I like the sound of that." She stared into emerald eyes wanting so bad to kiss Lexa but didn't want to cross a line that Lexa might have of showing their relationship in front of her people. Just as she was thinking about asking Lexa, she noticed Indra walking up behind Lexa so she pulled away.

Lexa was about to question the change in mood before she heard footsteps behind her. Turning around she was met with Indra, "Are we ready to leave?"

Indra nodded, "Yes, commander."

"Then let us be off," Lexa nodded as she moved to get on the cart once again. She was excited that this would be the last time she'd have to ride on this ridiculous contraption.

XXXXXXXXXXXX

Hours later, Lexa could tell that they were getting close to home and just as Clarke had promised, the cart had stopped. Clarke got up first to help Lexa get up for once. Once off the cart, Clarke and Lexa walked the rest of the way. Indra and the warriors waited for Clarke and Lexa to get to the front. If anyone should be seen first it should be them.

Lexa could see the opening of the trees in front of them and as they neared it she removed her arm from the sling Clarke had made for her. She felt pain as she lowered her arm to her side.

Clarke noticed this movement right away, "Lexa, you will not been seen as weak if you are taking care of your injuries."

Lexa thought about Clarke's words as they moved closer and closer to the opening. Just as they were about to reach the opening, Lexa put her arm back in the sling. "You win this one Clarke. My arm does hurt less if it is in the sling."

"Lexa, all they will see is their commander alive. We will get you to my mom, she'll put your arm in a cast, and then you should feel great, okay?" Clarke asked just before the opening.

Lexa nodded as they emerged from the woods and could see the ark not too far away.

It wasn't long before the gates were opening and certain people were walking out of the gate to greet their lost leaders.

Clarke and Lexa walked up to the people pouring out of the ark and some walking from their newly built grounder camp right next to the path.

Abby pushed her way through the crowd to her daughter, "Clarke, you're alive." She instantly pulled Clarke into a hug. When she pulled back, she looked at Lexa standing next to her, "Thank you for bringing my daughter back."

"If anyone should be given credit, it should be Clarke," Lexa didn't waste time to give credit where credit was due. "After all, she saved me."

Octavia was witness to this exchange, "Wait, you saved the commander Clarke?"

Clarke pulled from her mom, "Yes, I don't know how but we're alive so, I must have."

"What do you mean, you don't know how?" Octavia questioned.

"Okay okay," Abby got between the two of them. "How about we leave the questions for later? For now, why don't I get you two to medical to have a look at any injuries you may have? It looks like you've at least hurt yourself," Abby looked right at Lexa noticing her arm in a sling.

Lexa nodded, "Yes, I think that is a good idea. If you are able to lessen the pain even a little, I will be eternally grateful."

Clarke and Lexa move past the crowd with Abby toward medical as Sierra, Raven, Aleksy, Warrick and Clyde come into view.

"Who are these people, Raven?" Octavia asked.

Sierra barged into the conversation like she does, "Hey, I'm Sierra. Lexa's pal from when we were young and these three are Aleksy, Clyde and Warrick. We come from the clan that Clarke and Lexa were staying at." She looked around at the people thinking she could spot who she was thinking of. "Is that douche around here somewhere?"

"Who, Cyrus?" Octavia received a nod from the four standing in front of her. "No, he is probably off somewhere trying to convince people that Clarke is going to lose, why?"

"The reason the four of us are here is because we are here to show support for Clarke in her fight. We've been witness to her strength. Trust me when I say, she has a real chance at kicking his ass," Sierra explained with determination in her eyes.

"She's right," the shorter one Aleksy agreed. "Clarke beat the three of us in a fight. If she can beat us, she can beat anyone."

Octavia couldn't pinpoint the feeling she was feeling. She was excited that Clarke was such a good fighter but she was also confused that Clarke became so good so fast when it took her weeks to get as good as she is.

They continued to talk as they helped unload everything.

XXXXXXXXXX

In medical, much to Lexa's protest, Clarke convinced Lexa that she be checked first. Yes did Clarke's hand hurt, sure but not to the extent that Lexa's arm did.

Lexa held back any pain she did have as Abby turned her arm every which way to figure out the extent of the injury.

Without even thinking about it, Clarke held Lexa's left hand in both of her hands to try and comfort her through the pain she most definitely was feeling.

Abby looked over to talk to Lexa when she briefly noticed Clarke holding Lexa's hand but looked past it to talk about the injury, "Okay, your arm is not completely broken just as the healer had told you but I would like to still put a cast on it if you're okay with that. It will help to stabilize your arm more."

Lexa breathed in and out a little harshly trying to hold back her pain but failing miserably, "Would this cast, lessen the pain or make it worse?"

"It would lessen it," Abby answered quite quickly. "You wouldn't be able to fight but you would be able to do more than you've probably been able to do so far."

Lexa looked to Clarke to see what she thought.

With unspoken language, Clarke nodded.

Lexa looked back to Abby, "Let's do it."

"Okay, I'll go get what I need and I'll be right back. Clarke, could you help me?" Abby asked nonchalantly.

Clarke looked to Lexa to make sure she'd be good alone, "You good?"

Lexa nodded, "Go help your mom."

Clarke turned around to follow her mom into the supply closet that was far enough that if Lexa wanted to listen in, she wouldn't be able to. "Isn't this more of a one person job, mom? Don't you just need the bandage and whatever it is you use to make the paste?"

Abby nodded, "Yes, that's true."

"Then why ask for my help?" Clarke asked now curious about her mom's ulterior motives.

"I'm not blind Clarke," Abby announced as she rummaged through the shelves looking for what she was looking for.

"I don't know what you mean," Clarke asked even more so confused.

Abby walked closer to Clarke with the things she required, "I saw the way you two looked at each other out by the gates and you two holding hands in there solidified my suspicions." Abby could see the panic wash over Clarke's face. "I just want you to know, I'm happy for you. Finding someone in this harsh world we live in now, is really wonderful. You've chosen a good one. I'm happy you two finally admitted your feelings because if you two didn't make a move at some point, I might have done it for you. I've been watching you two dance around each other for some time now."

"Mom, seriously," Clarke questioned her mom as she shook her head.

"Yes," Abby answered before walking past Clarke back to the room Lexa was in.

Walking in the room, Clarke wasn't ready to drop the conversation, "I don't believe you would have done it."

"Of course you don't but I would have," Abby indicated as she mixed the paste she needed for Lexa's arm.

"How?" Clarke questioned with a smile. "How would you have tricked Lexa or me into admitting our feelings?"

In most situations, Lexa would have kept her feelings to herself but in this moment, she couldn't. Panic overtook her face.

"Wow, Clarke is the exception to your stoic commander look is she?" Abby questioned feeling that she could joke with Lexa now that she knew about their relationship.

Clarke chuckled at the comment because she could see the look of panic on Lexa's face. "Lexa, she figured us out. You don't need to panic. She's okay with you and me."

Lexa let go of a breath she wasn't aware she was holding in. Never in her life had she felt so nervous about something like approval from parents but then again, she's never been with someone like Clarke either. Someone she felt she could spend her life with.

"Okay, I have the paste ready. So I'm going to be covering from your knuckles on your fingers down to just above your elbow." Abby explained knowing that this concept may be lost on Lexa. "It will harden and help your bones to heal properly. I would assume you don't want any pain medication, so this is going to hurt to realign the bones."

Lexa nodded, "You would be correct. I do not want anything that would hinder my ability to lead. I am ready whenever you are. I had to deal with my shoulder going back into its socket. I can deal with this." She explained but couldn't stop her body from gripping Clarke's hand a little tighter in preparation for the pain she was about to feel.

With some movement from Abby and some strained cries from Lexa as she gripped onto Clarke's hand, Abby was able to get Lexa's arm in a place that she felt was going to have to do. "Okay, stay as still as possible as I apply the paste."

Lexa attempted to nod feeling like she was going to pass out from the pain as she looked over to Clarke, "Please… distract me."

"Well, it feel as though you may have crushed my already injured hand," Clarke couldn't help but to laugh but she did not get the same reaction from Lexa.

"I am so sorry, Clarke. Clarke, please for-"

"Lexa, it is fine. I'm only joking. My hand is fine. You holding onto it a little tightly is not enough for you to hinder my ability to beat Cyrus tomorrow." Clarke admitted trying to relax Lexa.

Putting a final coat of the paste onto Lexa's arm, Abby questioned what was just said, "The challenge is going to be tomorrow? Isn't that a little rushed? Clarke won't be ready."

Clarke turned to her mom, "Mom, trust me. I'm ready. If I had more time, Cyrus would see just how good I've become. If we do the challenge quickly, then he won't have enough time to change his tactic."

"Clarke is right Abby. I fought Clarke myself, she is ready," Lexa added to what Clarke said to try to convince Clarke's mom that Clarke is ready.

Abby looked between the two of them, "I want to believe the two of you, I do but Clarke is my daughter, I'll always be worried for her safety." She wrapped the paste with a black wrap she had found in the supply closet so that people wouldn't be able to clearly see their commander has an injured arm. A few minutes pass and Abby is confident that it has dried. She looked over it once again to check her work and when she was satisfied she nodded to them. "Okay, you should be good to go."

Lexa clenched her right hand as best she could with the added material on her hand and couldn't feel much pain. "Wow, I was unsure of this to begin with but you were right. My arm really does feel better. How long does it have to stay on?" Lexa asked the obvious question.

Abby thought for a few moments, "I'd say a few weeks should be good. Let's say a month for good measure. Come see me in a month, if everything looks and feels good, we'll take it off. If not, you may need more time."

Lexa nodded, "Okay."

Abby looked to Clarke, "Any injuries you want me to look at?"

Clarke shook her head, "No, just came in here for Lexa. Thanks mom."

Lexa looked at Clarke confused as Clarke practically shoved her out of Medical. "Clarke, your hand should be looked at."

Clarke shrugged, "Maybe but the challenge is tomorrow. My hand is fine for that. How about we'll just see what tomorrow brings and then I'll go to medical all you want. Deal?"

Lexa knew she wasn't going to win this one so she conceded, "Deal."

With that Clarke and Lexa left to go say hello to everyone else in the camp and find out what has been happening since they fell off the cliff.


	23. Day 11 (Part 2)

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Author's Note: I am so sorry for the wait, two weeks ago I spent the week determining everything that needed to be included before the challenge. Then last week, I got a terrible cold that prevented me from being about to write. I'm still not 100% this week but I was able to get a good chunk of what I needed to write before the challenge done. That's right, I know that a lot of you are thinking this is the "Challenge" chapter... Unfortunately, that is not the case. When I realized everything that needed to be included, I realized I would have to split the chapter in half. It became ever more so apparent as I continued writing this chapter and it got longer and longer as I kept adding things in. This chapter is: 10,262 words. That should make up for the lack of an update.
> 
> I got a little carried away with my hatred for a certain character in the show and let that play out in this chapter, it went a direction I didn't expect but it worked so I kept it in the chapter. I think you'll all enjoy it with what's been going on in the show lately.
> 
> Also, the last part of this chapter took a turn I wasn't planning and because of it, I have to change the rating of this fanfic from T to M. The situation and the fact that the challenge is coming, only made more sense to go for it, so I did. I tried to be descriptive without being too descriptive because I've lost fanfics for breaking rules before so I tried hard not to cross any lines. I would appreciate any thoughts you may have about it as I'm still iffy about writing romance.
> 
> I hope you all enjoy this Clexa filled chapter. :D Next chapter will be the challenge.

Chapter 23

_**DAY 11 CONTINUED...** _

As Clarke and Lexa walked out of the Ark, with full intention to help unload anything that might be left in the cart, they heard a commotion off to the side of the Ark. Without question, the two of them made their way toward the verbal fight between two people.

"Wick, what did I say when I left? Actually more like, what did Indra say?" Raven yelled using her hands as emphasis. She felt short next to him but she let her voice make up the difference.

"I just thought that…"

"You thought what? We have no idea what it is. It makes more sense for one person and one person alone to work on figuring that out. When Indra finds out about this, I don't even want to know what happens to you." Raven couldn't keep her voice under control she was too pissed off.

"What is going on here?!"

Raven's eyes went wide as she slowly turned around coming face to face with none other than Indra. "Indra… Hello. Can I help you with something?" She gulped nervously afraid of the force that would inevitably be unleashed.

Just as Indra was about to speak, Clarke and Lexa walked up next to Indra. "What is going on here?" Lexa asked wanting to know exactly why Raven immediately went to fight with Wick as soon as she came back.

Clarke looked at Raven but something behind her caught her eye, "What is that?"

Lexa pulled her sight from Raven to look at Clarke and back to what she was looking at. Once her eyes caught what Clarke was looking at, she wasted no time to move past Raven and Wick to look at the object. She leaned down to look at it closer, "I have never seen anything with such markings. What is this?" She asked as she stood back up.

Raven shrugged her shoulders before looking back at Wick with a fire, "That's what I have been trying to figure out but Wick just can't seem to understand what no means." She emphasized 'I' to give extra effect that she was the one set to figure it out.

"I know that I may have hit my head a few times from training and falling in that river, but I don't remember this being here before we fell in the river," Clarke pointed out walking closer to the unknown object. "So where did it come from?"

Raven turned away from Wick to look at Clarke and Lexa, "What do you remember from that day? The day we thought we'd lost you two?" Raven asked wanting to find out just how much information they might know about this object.

Clarke tried to think back but as she did all she could think about was Lexa letting go of her hand. She couldn't focus on what occurred before that moment. "I…"

Lexa could see Clarke struggling so she decided to jump in to save Clarke from having to explain what happened on that cliffs edge. "We were in the trees working on Clarke's agility by jumping from tree to tree. As we neared the river's edge high up in the trees, Clarke froze and I remember her saying something but I didn't quite catch what."

"I heard something," Clarke added to Lexa's interpretation of what happened that fateful day.

Lexa looked over to Clarke as she heard her voice and smiled. "Yes, that's right…" Lexa confirmed making it seemed like she had heard when she actually didn't. She didn't want Clarke to have to be the one to explain so she continued, "Next thing I know there was what sounded like an explosion. It resembled the sound the missile made when it hit Tondc. Before I could react or say anything the ground began to shake and the trees we were in began to lift up from the ground. The ground continued to shake and unfortunately we ended up in the river. So it seemed like it was just an earthquake but I have a feeling you are going to say differently."

Clarke looked to Lexa appreciative that she didn't go into detail about what actually happened between them on the cliff.

"You're right. It wasn't an earthquake." Raven stopped for a second when she got a look from Wick and even Indra. "Okay, well it might have turned into an earthquake but that object is what caused it to become an earthquake." She defended herself from the looks she got. "On that day, I was walking to somewhere, I don't really remember what I was doing but I heard this sound come from high in the clouds. I knew it wasn't just me when other people around me were looking at the sky too. All of a sudden, what looked like a meteor was falling from the sky toward the forest. Those of us out there watched it until the trees blocked where it went, but from the sound it made hitting the ground it was clear we could find it very easily. The impact of the object created such a force that even us here at the ark felt the ground shake. It was enough to knock me and others to the ground. Once we were sure the ground was done shaking, Kane, Octavia, Bellamy, Indra and Ryder went into the forest to investigate and find out if you two survived because neither of you had come back afterward."

"After Octavia, Bellamy and I had confirmed that you and Clarke had fallen into the river, we turned to the object." Indra added in looking straight at Lexa.

"That's when we came in," Wick wanted to jump into the conversation but Raven quickly shut him down.

"Shut it Wick!" Raven didn't even look at Wick, she just put her up hand to stop him from speaking. "They called us in to look it over to make sure we could bring it back or not. When we were sure it wouldn't explode, we brought it back here. I still don't know what it is or what its purpose is. All I know is that it's some kind of tech but I've never seen anything like it before."

"Why is it within the gate walls if you don't know what it is?" Clarke asked the question clearly on both of their minds.

"Clarke, do you know how cold it is out here?" Raven asked very seriously as she noticed Clarke was only wearing her light grey skin tight long sleeve shirt.

Clarke raised an eyebrow in confusion at the strange change of subject, "No…"

"You should know how cold it is out here. You, of all people should be freezing with what you're wearing!" Raven exclaimed surprised that Clarke wasn't shivering. "For your information, it's cold. Its hands freezing, nippy wind against your cheeks, cold. We did numerous tests to make sure we would be safe around this object and we brought it into the walls of the gate. I don't trust that it should be brought into the ark yet but for now at least the wind isn't as chilly and it's protected at all times." Raven explained the reasons for them bringing this mysterious object into the gates.

"Then why are you two fighting about this?" Lexa asked the question she had been waiting for an answer for since they got here.

"We're fighting because I clearly remember before leaving to get you two that he promised he wouldn't do any tests on this object. Yet as soon as I arrived I noticed him working on the object!" She directed her anger to Wick but was talking to Lexa.

Indra turned to Wick, "Is this true?"

Wick looked to Indra and couldn't define the look on her face, "Yes."

"Is your memory not very good?" Indra questioned Wick.

Wick didn't know how to answer at first before answering weakly, "My memory… works fine."

"Clearly not," Indra clenched her jaw holding back anger she would show if not for the commander so close.

Lexa took a step forward, "Explain what is going on now." She was getting tired of being out of the loop on this discussion and wanted answers now.

Indra turned from Wick to Lexa, "Before leaving, I had told Wick to leave the tests to Raven as she was the most qualified and had been working on it the most. She alone was the one to determine if it was safe to bring into the gates. He knew the consequences for breaking that rule and he still did it."

"To be fair, you didn't actually say what would happen…" Wick began speaking before he got a death glare from not only Indra but Raven as well and decided not speaking was a good idea.

Lexa weighed the options in her mind before turning to Wick and taking a few steps in his direction, "Let me get this straight, you completely disregarded what Indra had asked of you?" She waited for an answer but when none came she assumed that was his answer. "Then you decided that working on an object that Raven knew the most about was a good idea?" Still nothing came from Wick and she was starting to see what irritated Raven about Wick. "I will say one thing Wick. If you were my people, I would not be so kind to your punishment for this. Let us hope, your people will be kinder than I would be. Clarke?" She turned to Clarke to find out what Wick's punishment will be.

"Uh… It's not really up to me what happens to Wick. My mom is still the chancellor. It's really up to her what happens to him. I may be a leader figure to those that came down in the drop ship but I still don't have any power here in this camp so…" Clarke didn't know how to explain that she was rather powerless in the ark.

Lexa turned to Raven, "Raven, take Wick to Abby and tell her to make a decision about Wick's purpose in all of this. Otherwise I will do it myself and I can assure Wick, I will not be as nice about it." Lexa didn't drop her anger not even once. She watched as the two walked away before turning to Indra, "Indra, we need to discuss the progress of the rebuild. Clarke, do you wish to join?"

Clarke noticed Jasper walking toward them and from the look in his eye; he was looking to speak to her. "No, you go ahead. I'm going to find Aleksy, Warrick and Clyde and see if they want to go train once more."

Lexa gave a swift nod before walking away with Indra.

"Hey Jasper," Clarke went to hug him missing her friend. She could feel his arms around her but she could sense something off about him. Pulling back, she looked him in the eyes, "Is everything okay?"

Jasper had a look in his eyes. He shook his head, jaw clenched as he held back his emotion not realizing that seeing Clarke would create so many mixed emotions come to the surface. "You have no idea how hard this is for me." He could feel tears building up in his eyes. He wasn't sure if they were tears of anger or sadness.

Clarke looked at him confused. She wanted to help him but she didn't know what the issue was so she continued to just stand there.

"You have no idea how much I wanted to be pissed at you. Absolutely furious but I can't. I can't be furious. I want to throw things and I want to yell at you for killing one of my best friends." He continued to shake his head trying to rid himself of the tears.

A lightbulb went off in Clarke and she knew what he was referring too. He was talking about Finn. "Jasper…"

"Don't Jasper me. To come out of that mountain and find out that you murdered Finn… I want to be angry so much."

"Jasper, I wouldn't blame you if you were angry at me…" Clarke reached out to try and comfort him but he pulled back.

"You're not listening Clarke. As much as I want to be pissed at you, I can't," Once he admitted the truth, a tear fell from his right eye.

Clarke looked at Jasper confused again, "I don't understand."

"Clarke, you might die tomorrow! Not two days from now, a week, a month, no, the challenge is tomorrow morning. I want to be pissed at you for killing Finn but I can't be pissed because I don't want you to go into the challenge thinking that you have lost me as a friend. I don't want you going into that fight with any unfinished business. I can't be angry at you knowing that in less than twenty four hours, you might not be around anymore." Jasper finally let go of the truth and immediately he felt ten times better wiping at the tears in his eyes from the anger.

Clarke looked around to see if anyone was paying attention to them before moving closer to Jasper so only he could hear, "Jasper, I know all of you are afraid for me. That I don't have a chance at winning against Cyrus and when he challenged me, I was right there with all of you. But Jasper, I will surprise you tomorrow." She pulled away from Jasper to see if she could see her knew buddies and when she spotted them by the gate, she turned and pointed toward them. "You see those guys over there?"

Jasper nodded, "Yeah, they came back with you guys."

"They didn't come back for just any reason. They came back with us because they want to see me fight. While I was in that other camp, I became a really good fighter." She stopped as a smile came over her as she remembered what they had said to her a few days ago. "They actually consider me as one of them."

"One of them, what does that mean?" Jasper asked confused.

"I beat the three of them in a fight. When I beat them all at once, they decided that I could be considered one of them, a grounder. They are here because they know how good I have become as a fighter and wanted at least of few people on my side to be cheering and not shaking in fear of my death." Clarke explained to the best of her abilities. "Jasper, if you want to hate me, hate me… don't make it about the challenge."

Jasper shook his head, "Clarke, I can't do that. Maybe after you win I'll hate you."

Clarke couldn't help the laugh that escaped her lips. "Only you would do something like that."

He shrugged his shoulders, "Well… If you die, I would rather know that I had fun with you before your death rather than know that I hated you."

Clarke smiled, "What do you have in mind for fun?"

Jasper smiled, "Okay, correct me if I'm wrong but there is something going on between you and the commander isn't there?"

Clarke blushed and looked away trying to hide the fact that it seemed like everyone around her knew about her feelings for the commander before she did.

"From the fact that you're blushing, I'm going to take that as a yes. So I have to ask, why did you tell Monty he had a shot with the commander?" Jasper asked wanting to know the truth ever since he found out from Monty that Lexa turned him down with the explanation that she was into someone else.

Clarke burst out into laughter completely forgetting she had done that. "Oh my god, I totally forgot about that. With all of this challenge business and training and falling off the cliff, I totally forgot I did that. That was hilarious. I was actually witness to her breaking to him that she wasn't interested. It was great."

"I'm glad you're enjoying this, so why did you do it if you and her were already a thing?" Jasper asked again.

Clarke shook her head, "We weren't anything then. I did know she had a thing for me but to be honest, I didn't think Monty would actually do it." She couldn't help the laughter that erupted from her thinking about his stuttering in the woods. "She and I only recently became more."

Jasper nodded, "Hmm… I'm happy for you."

"Thanks, Jasper," She couldn't help the smile that appeared on her face from knowing that Jasper was also okay with her relationship with Lexa.

"So, would you be interested in messing with Monty one more time?" Jasper asked with a mischievous smile.

Clarke looked at him with question, "You were just against me messing with Monty and now you want to mess with him some more? How is that fair?"

"Clarke, I had to think of something on short notice okay. It only made sense to go back to messing with Monty again." Jasper pointed out that Clarke just arrived back and then he found out the challenge was the next morning.

"Fine, what did you have in mind?" Clarke asked.

"Okay, this is my idea…" He went on to explain to only Clarke about his plans and how he'd bring in a few others but made sure Clarke was aware that the plan would only work if Lexa was in on it. If not, it wouldn't work.

Clarke nodded in agreement of the plan. "I don't know if Lexa will be on board with it."

"Just try Clarke. I'm sure you could convince her of anything. Just tell her, that it's all in fun," He smiled and nodded.

She just stared at him, "I'll try but I don't know if she'll be down for it."

"Clarke, just do it. When would work for you?" Jasper asked wanting to make sure he didn't tell Monty to go looking for Lexa too early.

"Well, I'm going to go see if those three would like to do some training for a bit so, let's say in two, maybe three hours I'll make sure I'm done training and have spoken to Lexa in three hours. Sound good?" Clarke asked to confirm with Jasper.

Jasper nodded, "Sounds good. See ya later Clarke. I need to go find Octavia, I know she'll want to be involved in this."

Clarke looked at him confused wondering why Octavia would want to be involved but decided to not think about it and made her way to the three grounders talking by the gate. "Hey guys!"

The shorter one Aleksy turned around to Clarke, "Hey, Clarke. What's up? How's the commander?"

"She's good," Clarke nodded. "Hey so I was wondering if you guys would like to do some last minute training out in the woods with me? Maybe brush up on anything I may need some extra work on?"

"I did not want to be the one to have to tell you that you need a lot of work if you want any chance of winning tomorrow," Warrick announced a little louder than required.

Clarke saw right past his sarcasm, "I like your style Warrick. Trying to keep my secret, a secret. Nice one."

Warrick smiled, "I try."

Clarke looked around, "I haven't seen Cyrus since I came back so I think you should be safe to talk normally."

"Hey, I would rather be safe than sorry. I do not want you going into that fight with him knowing just how good you are," Warrick defended what he had said a minute ago.

"So, is that a yes on training?" Clarke asked again.

Clyde decided to speak this time but at a whisper, the exact opposite of what Warrick did, "Let's be honest, Clarke. You do not need training anymore. We will gladly go out and spar with you if you would like but there is not anything new we could show you."

Clarke couldn't help the smile that appeared on her face from their confidence in her, "Thanks guys. Can we go now?" She asked excited to go out with her new friends.

Aleksy looked at Clarke, "How about we race to the forest line? As soon as the gates open completely, we'll go."

Clarke nodded in agreement just as the other two did. She turned to the guard at the gate, "Can you open the gate?"

With some hesitation, he finally opened it realizing that Clarke and the new grounders weren't going to leave if he didn't open the door.

Once it was wide open, the four of them looked at each other and then back to the guard at the gate. Clarke asked the question all on their minds, "Would you do the honor?"

The guard whose name Clarke didn't know wasn't sure he should do it at first but then he realized he hadn't done anything fun the entire time he was on the ground. "Okay, when I say go, you go, got it?" When he got four nods, he spoke again with enthusiasm, "Ready, Set…. Go!" He waved his armed down to instigate the race.

The four of them were off running on the grounds toward the forest. Aleksy was surprisingly the fastest of the four of them. His height did not hold him back and seemed to help him run quicker. Clyde was neck in neck with Clarke, and Warrick was behind the two of them keeping up but not close enough to pass them. Clarke had the biggest smile on her face as she pushed herself more and more to catch up to Aleksy and beat Clyde. She used her training to help her here, from paying attention to any rocks or dips in the ground to watching where her opponents were at every chance she could. The forest line was in the distance and Clarke was determined to beat them once again.

XXXXXXXXXXX

Over in the new grounder village that was looking more and more like a village than a pile of materials, Lexa and Indra were making their way to the challenge grounds that Clarke would be fighting on the next day. Indra heard a rumbling and looked over to the source of the sound, her eyes connected with the four of them running.

"Indra…" Lexa stopped as she noticed Indra was not looking at her but was looking off toward the field between the ark and the forest. She moved to see what she was staring at and could clearly see it was Clarke, Clyde, Warrick and Aleksy. Even from this distance, Lexa couldn't help the smile that appeared on her face as she could see just how happy Clarke was.

Indra looked back to Lexa, "Yes, commander?"

Lexa was pulled from her thoughts as Indra asked the question, "Yes. Has the grounds for the challenge been smoothed out?"

Indra nodded, "Yes." They walked into the area built for the challenge. "We made it to the specifications of the one in Polis. However there is only dirt here and we were not able to build a stage."

"That is fine. As long as the ground is not filled with rocks and dips in the ground that should be fine. I do not want Cyrus to get the upper hand because Clarke tripped on a large rock." Lexa looked around the area with careful eyes and from the quick look over, it didn't look like there were any rocks.

"I will get a few warriors to go over it once more to make sure there are no surprises. May I speak openly?" Indra asked wanting to make sure she could say what she wanted without punishment.

"Yes," Lexa answered easily knowing that Indra would not cross any lines.

"I have to admit Commander that if Clarke happens to lose, I plan on killing Cyrus." Indra stated with no fear, just truth.

Lexa looked at Indra and could see the honesty, "Do not worry Indra, Clarke will do fine. Know this, if Clarke loses, Cyrus will not make it off the battlefield. I will make sure of that." Lexa stated with determination not caring who may overhear her.

Indra nodded in understanding. "You should know that while you have been away, Cyrus has been running his mouth. He thinks he will have no problem killing Clarke."

Since Lexa was well aware that they were in the middle of the new grounder village, she knew that Cyrus could be around any corner and did not want to give up Clarke's secret. Lexa turned to Indra with a knowing look, "We will see tomorrow. There is always a possibility that my training efforts did not stick with Clarke. Only time will tell."

"Yes commander," Indra nodded. "Is there anything else I can help you with?"

Lexa shook her head, "No, thank you Indra." She made her way over to her tent. It looked to be the most weathered as though they may have built it first. She smiled as she entered with the intention to change into warmer clothing as her current shirt was losing its ability to retain heat. What Raven had pointed out earlier of Clarke's thin shirt, Lexa made a point to make sure she bring her one of her warmer jackets. There was no way she was going to allow Clarke to continue to wear that thin shirt in this ever growing cold weather.

XXXXXXXXX

Hours pass by and Clarke was waving goodbye to her friends as she went to go find Lexa so she could fill her in with Jasper's ridiculous plan to mess with Monty some more. While lost in her mind, she didn't realize she was walking toward the ark and not the newly built village. "Wait… Lexa wouldn't be at the ark." She blurted out instead of thinking about it. When she was sure no one had heard her, she turned around to make her way toward the village. She wasn't sure where Lexa's tent would be but she was sure she'd find it easily. Lexa's tents always stood out from the rest.

About midway from the ark to the village, a voice from behind caught her attention, "Clarke, can we talk?"

Clarke turned away from the village to look at none other than Bellamy. It occurred to her right away that she hadn't spoken to him since he accused her outside of the mountain. She still wasn't sure where she stood with him but she was about to find out from this conversation. "What is Bellamy?" She asked trying to sound like she was curious to know what he had to say but a part of her didn't really care. Which part would win out would be determined right here and now.

"Clarke, I just… I just want to apologize for what I did outside the mountain. I should have thought about it more before blowing up on you. You didn't deserve that. Had I known that this could have happened… That you could have been challenged, I would have done it differently." Bellamy explained to the best of his abilities.

From that, she instantly knew whether she would forgive him or not. Her face went from one of trying to understand to determination that she wouldn't back down this time, "That's the problem though isn't it?" She stated not wanting an answer from him. "You don't think about other people when you do things. You only ever think about how it will affect you. I shouldn't have been surprised that you did what you did. This is how you've been from the moment we landed on the ground."

"Clarke, that's not fair. What we had to do to survive, that doesn't define who we are." He reiterated what they had said to each other a couple of times in the past trying to make a point.

"What WE do?" Clarke dragged the question out. "You mean what I do." She pointed to herself. "Last I checked Bellamy; I'm the one that has been doing harsh things to survive. I'm the one that pulled the lever closing the drop ship door to kill all of those grounders… I'm the one that escaped Mount Weather. I am the one that watched countless people that I have come to know, grounders and our people alike, die whether by my hand or not. You know nothing about what I have gone through to get here. What I have had to do to survive, all of it may not define me, but I have become a better leader from it."

Bellamy looked at Clarke confused, "So what you're saying is that if you could go back, save the people of Tondc, you wouldn't? You wouldn't want to save all of those people that were killed?"

Clarke sighed getting tired of having to defend her actions over and over again before looking him in the eyes, "Bellamy… One thing I have learned in this last week and half of training has been that life is too short, we can't think about the, what if's. What if I had chosen to try and save the people of Tondc? What if Finn didn't give himself up and the grounders killed all of us? What if I didn't send you into the mountain? What if the mountain men found a way to convince Lexa to leave us there to die? There are so many different ways everything could have happened but there is no way to change what happened. We can't go back into the past and change things. We can only look forward. Lexa has helped me to really accept that. When will you?"

Bellamy's entire demeanor changed to one of anger, at the mention of Lexa's name, "She still has you wrapped around her little finger, doesn't she? Anything she says, goes. Isn't that right Clarke?"

Clarke looked at him confused, "What are you talking about? This is about you and me."

"Sure…" Bellamy shook his head, "If only I could believe that. It seems to me that she controls you."

"Lexa has nothing to do with this!" She yelled a little too loudly but she didn't care as no one was around them. "You know what Bellamy, I can't forgive you. After what you did to me, after you chose to think about yourself in that situation instead of me or anyone for that matter... That's not forgivable. I used to call you my friend, someone I could share the leadership roles with… But you're not a leader. I don't know what you are." Clarke shook her head in anger. "I would expect different from you…" She could feel tears stinging her eyes.

Bellamy was about to take a step closer to Clarke when he noticed a familiar figure walking up behind Clarke. The iconic long jacket made the shape of the figure clear as to who it was. He was about to speak when that figure spoke.

"Walk away Bellamy," Lexa spoke with determination. Her eyes showed just how much trying to push her would not be a good idea.

Bellamy couldn't help but to grin as he wasn't going to back down now, "You don't control me, commander." He sneered wanting to see just how far he could push her. "I think you wish that you could. Wish that you could do as you please with my people but you can't."

Lexa wet her lips in anger before opening her mouth to speak once again, "Do you have death wish?"

"Bellamy, stop!" Clarke pleaded knowing that pushing Lexa would not end well.

He took a step closer to Clarke, "I'll stop when you see the error in your ways."

Lexa was getting tired of this tirade Bellamy was on so she wedged her way between the two of them. She shoved Bellamy back so that she could stand in front of Clarke blocking anymore verbal attacks he might have for Clarke. If he wanted to fight someone, Lexa made sure it would be her. "I'll say it again, walk away," Lexa warned with more determination as her jaw clenched, her right hand hovering over her dagger attached to her right thigh.

Bellamy straightened his jacket from Lexa shoving him back, "You wouldn't dare kill me. Clarke might not forgive me, but I think she wouldn't forgive you for killing one of her own. Think about that before you threaten me."

Lexa took a step closer to Bellamy knowing that Clarke would be safe as long as she stayed behind her, "Who says anything about killing you? I can think of other ways to make you suffer. You are probably right about your people not agreeing with my tactics but I also believe that if they knew the full extent of what lead to it… I think they may be at least open to it."

Bellamy couldn't help but to laugh, "Abby and Kane wouldn't be alright with it and you know it."

Lexa clenched her jaw once more getting tired of his back and forth nature. She tried words and now that it was clear that words would not work, she went to her nature. With her right hand she quickly unclipped the dagger with her thumb and picked it up launching at Bellamy with the dagger awkwardly positioned against his neck. With her arm being casted, she slipped a little and could see some blood coming from a cut on his neck. She could see his demeanor change and it almost looked as though that he was afraid.

"Lexa, what are you doing?" Clarke moved closer to them standing next to the two of them.

"He deserves to die! He has threatened you too many times, he does not deserve to continue breathing," Lexa explained staring at Bellamy the entire time.

Clarke put her hands up with the intention to place her right hand on Lexa's right arm but she had a feeling that could make the situation worse so she couldn't to stand a step back with her hands in the ready just in case. "Lexa, I agree. He doesn't deserve to live. Trust me, I know. He's screwed me over more times than I can count but this isn't how we deal with stuff like this. I know you're just trying to protect me and I appreciate that but please… stop." She was sure she was getting through to Lexa so she placed her left hand on Lexa's right shoulder instead of her arm.

Lexa pulled her sight from Bellamy to Clarke and could see Clarke pleading for her to stop. As much as she wanted to end Bellamy's life here and now, she did as she was asked and pulled the knife away from his throat. She placed it back in its holster and snapped it in.

Clarke looked to Lexa, "Thank you."

Bellamy stood back wiping his hand on his throat and immediately noticed the blood, "You cut me!"

Lexa looked back at him with anger, "You are lucky that is all you got." She took another step to him and he stumbled back. "Do I need to repeat myself?"

He shook his head afraid for his life in this moment. "No, I'll leave…." With that he stumbled around them before running back toward the ark.

Lexa watched him run away and once she was sure he was truly gone, she pulled her attention back to Clarke, "Are you okay?" She asked all of her anger gone and all was left was worry. "He didn't hurt you did he?" Lexa looked Clarke over before pulling her into her own embrace and placing her hands on each side of Clarke's face to look her face over as well.

Once Lexa's hands were off her face, Clarke shook her head, "No, I'm fine. He just wouldn't back down. How did you know to come over here anyways?"

Lexa gave her a knowing look, "Clarke, I could hear you two fighting from my tent. I am surprised that more did not come to your aid."

Clarke smiled, "Well, of anyone that could have come, I'm glad it was you. Even if you did take it a little overboard," Clarke couldn't help but chuckle at the last part.

"This is not a laughing matter, Clarke. Words can easily turn into a bloodbath, I was not about to let that happen to you. I may be injured but you will always be my number one priority. I will always protect you," Lexa reassured Clarke. "I love you Clarke, I would never let anything happen to you. Anything that I have control over," She added that last part in in reference to the coming challenge.

Clarke smiled at the honesty of Lexa's words. She could see the love Lexa felt for her radiating off of her entire being. It was too much for Clarke to not pull her into her. Their lips connected and all she could feel was the love Lexa felt for her. As Clarke's left hand tangled in Lexa's braids to deepen the kiss Clarke heard someone yell causing them to pull away.

"God dammit, Jasper!"

Clarke looked over still engulfed in Lexa's arms to see Monty yell and then turn around and run off. Clarke couldn't help but to laugh before looking back at Lexa apologetically, "Oops, with this whole Bellamy thing, I forgot about Jasper's plan."

Lexa looked at Clarke confused, "Plan? For what?"

Clarke looked back up into emerald eyes, "Jasper wanted to play another joke on Monty. Do you remember when he tried to ask you out not too far from Mount Weather and you totally shot him down?"

"I thought you were not in those woods Clarke?" Lexa asked knowing that she was right all along.

Clarke gave in to defeat, "Fine, you were right. That was me in the forest. Happy?" When she got a nod from Lexa she continued on. "It was me that caused him to try and ask you out. I put it in his mind that you weren't with anyone. I didn't think he'd actually do anything. I was so wrong." She chose to continue speaking so that Lexa couldn't ask about it. "Anyways, Jasper wanted to go on that idea again and wanted Monty to ask you out again but instead I was supposed to be nearby and I guess jump in saying that you and I were together. Kiss you that kind of thing. I don't know, I wasn't too fond of the idea anyways so I'm glad I forgot about it."

"You do know I would not have gone with that plan, yes?" Lexa pointed out the obvious.

Clarke nodded, "That is what I told Jasper but he was sure I could convince you."

Lexa dropped the conversation as she felt Clarke shiver in her arms, "You really need to get a jacket more suited for this weather, Clarke."

"I know, I just don't know what they did with my blue jacket. Remember, I left it in the forest when we were training in the trees. I couldn't find it out there so either it's gone or my people have it somewhere." Clarke explained rubbing her hands against her arms to warm them up.

Lexa looked upon Clarke worried, "Come with me. I have something to show you."

"Oooo…. You have something to show me?" Clarke raised her eyebrow up with a grin.

"Yes," Lexa confirmed before turning them and walking back toward her tent.

Once they arrived in Lexa's tent, Clarke felt significantly less cold from the walls preventing the cool wind from getting in. Lexa walked in the back area where her bed was to grab a few things. She came out with a sword sheath Clarke recognized as her long bladed sword as well as a jacket. It wasn't as long as Lexa's current jacket. It looked like an older jacket may have been used for blending in the forest as it had lots of browns and greens associated with it. Lexa brought the jacket closer to Clarke, "Here, if you would like, you can wear this," she held onto the shoulders of the jacket waiting for Clarke to try it on.

Clarke smiled at the gesture before slipping each arm into the jacket. Lexa let go of it as soon as Clarke had it firmly around herself. She turned around to face Lexa once again in the jacket. Looking down at the jacket, she couldn't find a zipper, "Uh… how does this work? I don't see a zipper."

Lexa took a step closer to Clarke, "Oh, sorry. Let me help you. Since our ancestors determined early on that zippers failed too easily, they turned to sowing buckles onto the jackets as they cannot be worn out. Once they break, they are easier to replace than a zipper is." She reached for a few buckles that were placed on each side of the jacket from about five centimeters from the bottom to just below the collarbone. She snapped those together and helped with the remaining even though she knew Clarke could figure out the rest. It was just nice to be this close to Clarke. She had to savor every moment she had with the blonde just in case. Even though she was optimistic that Clarke would win tomorrow, she didn't want to take anything for granted. Once done, she took a step back to look at the jacket on Clarke, "It looks good on you," She smiled at the fit.

Clarke ran her hands along the sides of the jacket and tried moving her arms in it and noticed quite quickly that it wasn't too loose or tight on her. It almost felt like the jacket was made for her. The arms came up just past her wrists for extra protection from the cold. It seemed to be made with a thicker material than even her blue jacket but had more movement than her jacket could have ever given her. She felt as though she could probably fight in this jacket. The feel of the jacket made her want to go out into the woods and do some tests with it just to see if she could use it in the challenge the next day. Eventually she noticed the look on Lexa's face and had to respond, "Thank you so much Lexa. This jacket feels awesome. Is this a jacket I could use in the challenge tomorrow?"

Lexa smiled, "Feel free to use it in the challenge. I have used it for many fights. I can assure you it will not hinder your abilities."

"How long have you had this jacket?" Clarke asked curious to know why she'd never seen Lexa wear it before.

"I have had it for a few years now. When I needed a more commander-like jacket, like the one I am wearing now, I kept it as a back-up but since you are in need of one… It only made sense to give it to you." The commander admitted with ease. "It will help you when you tell people, you are one of us now." Lexa smiled knowing that what Aleksy, Clyde and Warrick considered her was important to her.

"That is a good point. Thank you so much." Clarke did the only thing she could think of to thank Lexa, with a kiss. She leaned into the commander once again connecting their lips. In this moment, she didn't want the contact for warmth; no she wanted Lexa to know how thankful she was. Since they were secluded in Lexa's tent, she knew that there would be absolutely no interruption from anyone and wasted no time wrapping her left hand around Lexa's neck and pulling her closer to deepen the kiss. This kiss turned from one of being thankful to one of passion.

Lexa could feel the fire in her belly and didn't want this to stop as she used her left hand to push back some of the scrolls on the table to the left of her. Once she was somewhat sure it was clear enough. As clear as she could know from having her eyes shut kissing Clarke. She used her strength and lifted the sky leader up onto the table. The pain she expected from her right arm never came, so she mentally made a note to thank Abby again for the cast. With the added height on her boots and the table, they were now of the same height.

"That was an unexpected motion," Clarke looked into emerald eyes with a fire, her legs unconsciously pulling Lexa closer to her.

"I thought it would make more sense for you to be less on your feet. You need to preserve your strength," Lexa grinned knowing how pathetic her reasoning was before connecting her lips with Clarke's again.

Clarke pulled back again to question Lexa's reasoning, "Is that what we're doing now? Preserving energy?" Before she leaned down to connect her lips with Lexa's neck. It might just be the heat of the moment but she was sure she felt Lexa shiver at the contact.

In a daze Lexa tried to respond coherently, "Exactly. Preserving energy, yes…" Even she wasn't sure what she was talking about but it didn't matter. In this moment, she wanted to let go of everything that ever held her back before.

For about a week or so Clarke needed things to keep her warm for the lack of a jacket but from making out with Lexa, in this moment, she didn't want warmth anymore. She moved her lips up Lexa's neck, along her jawline and back to her lips for one last peck before going for the buckles on the jacket Lexa just gave her.

Lexa watched Clarke make quick work of the buckles on her jacket and as she did, Lexa's mind finally caught up to what was happening. She knew that she wanted this to happen but she wasn't sure about Clarke. Once Lexa felt the jacket fly past her, she stopped Clarke's movements, "Clarke," Lexa stopped her feeling breathless. "Is this what you want?"

Clarke kissed Lexa once more before pulling back to look into emerald eyes, "Lexa, I have never been surer than anything else in my life." She let that really sink into Lexa before continuing, "We don't know what tomorrow will bring… We don't know if I will live or die. All I know is that I want to be with you and have this moment with you. Is this too soon for you?"

Lexa shook her head and tightened her grip on Clarke's hips, "Quite the opposite, Clarke. I just wanted to make sure you were ready."

Clarke couldn't help the smile that appeared from Lexa continuing to care more about what Clarke was feeling over herself. "I am. I want you," She unconsciously sucked her lips in to wet them feeling the dryness in the air around them.

Lexa stared at Clarke and when she was convinced Clarke wanted this just as much as she did, she wasted no time in taking every single buckle apart on her own jacket and letting it fall to the ground leaving just her black tank top. Before she let Clarke make a comment about her physique, she lifted Clarke up gaining a shriek of surprise, and moved the blonde the short distance to her bed in the back. It was smaller than what Lexa was used to back in Polis but it would do for this moment.

Clarke fell back on the bed as she watched Lexa remove her tall boots before slowly moving to hover over top of Clarke. Her right hand gliding over Lexa's features before pulling down on her neck. Their lips connected again, but the fire wasn't there. It was about love. They were feeling everything for the first time and wanted to relish in it and not rush it. Clarke felt an added heat when Lexa stopped hovering and dropped her body onto Clarke's, one of her legs falling between Clarke's legs. She moaned at the added friction created from Lexa's leg through both of their pants.

Lexa couldn't help the grin that appeared on her face from eliciting a reaction from Clarke. As she felt Clarke's fingers touch the skin on her waist moving up her back, she leaned up and pulled her own tank top off feeling too hot to keep it on anymore. The look in Clarke's eyes made her decision a great one.

Clarke couldn't help but to admire Lexa in her black bra. From the muscles clearly defined in her arms to her abs, she all of sudden felt her mouth go dry. "You're gorgeous." She distracted Lexa enough to get an upper hand on her flipping them over, almost taking them off the bed but Lexa was quick to adjust as her back hit the bed. Clarke looked surprised, "That was close."

"Do not worry Clarke; I am well aware of the size of this bed. I will be speaking to whoever made it at some point to adjust the width of it." Lexa grinned at the idea of a bigger bed with Clarke.

Clarke laughed, "Of course you will be." She leaned down and reconnected her lips to Lexa's lifting her butt off of Lexa's abdomen to do so. The feeling of Lexa's fingers dragging along the length of her legs and up under her shirt was intoxicating. Lexa's fingers kept rising and rising until she felt Lexa's good hand connect with her right bra covered breast and Clarke lost all hope of being in control. With no trouble, Clarke pulled off her shirt and found the clip unhooking her bra and tossing them both on the ground somewhere. When she looked back, Lexa had this look in her eyes that she'd never seen before. "What is it?"

"You… Are beautiful," Lexa continued to look over Clarke's body and couldn't wait to get to know each and every nook and cranny. She also noted the way the oak tree necklace looked on Clarke in this moment.

Clarke blushed at the compliment feeling shy all of a sudden.

Lexa pulled herself up into a sitting position to look Clarke right into the eyes, "You are beautiful to me." She leaned into Clarke connecting their lips, pulling Clarke back but using the momentum to roll them over again. Lexa wasted no time, moving from Clarke's lips down her neck, feeling the blonde shiver under her from each kiss and touch here and there. Her fingers tracing along newly freed breasts, as her lips continued down Clarke's body. She came to a halt when she reached Clarke's waist. As she moved into position, she carefully undid Clarke's boots pulling them off one by one and tossing them to the side. Once complete, she traced her hands up Clarke's legs finally coming in contact with the band of the blonde's pants and when Clarke lifted her butt, Lexa was able to easily take her pants and underwear off with ease.

Clarke felt shy once again as Lexa looked over her naked body but for some reason she didn't feel as shy as before. It could have been the look of hunger in Lexa's eyes that calmed her nerves. "Come here," Clarke beckoned for Lexa to kiss her again.

The commander moved down as requested, lying off to the left side of Clarke. Their lips melded together as one as Lexa's left hand had a mind of its own dragging down Clarke's body to the place of her desire. Her fingers came in contact with what she desired; she could feel the wetness of Clarke's folds and rubbed gently feeling Clarke squirm at the contact. When Clarke moaned into the kiss from the unexpected feeling, Lexa knew she'd done her job. Keeping constant contact with Clarke's lips, Lexa continued to make movements down below rubbing her most sensitive spot created reactions Lexa fed off of. It wasn't long before she disconnected for Clarke's lips and moved down creamy skin to her point of desire. She took a deep breath in of the sweet smell that was Clarke, intoxicating her even more.

Clarke bit back a moan when she felt the air from the breath out hit her most sensitive area down below. As Lexa's lips made contact with her folds, she couldn't help the moan that escaped her lips. She could only imagine Lexa's grin from the affect she was having on her as her eyes were shut too focused on each and every movement Lexa made. Lexa used her lips, or her tongue or the added finger here and there to amplify the pleasure factor. In this moment, Clarke realized she didn't truly know what pleasure was until now. She felt Lexa speed up the pace and when that happened Clarke knew she was done for and she was. Moments later, she was in euphoria, way up high in cloud nine. The only thought on her mind was that if she died tomorrow, this moment just made up for it. Life was complete. She didn't even do all of the work and she felt exhausted. So much so that she didn't even notice Lexa was back up to her face staring at her.

Lexa looked upon Clarke running her fingers along Clarke's cheek, "Are you still with me?"

Finally Clarke took in a few breaths and she felt like she was coming back down to what she thought might be considered normal, "Yeah… Yup… I think, I think I'm good."

"Are you sure? I thought I might have lost you there," Lexa asked grinning that she was able to do what she did to Clarke.

Clarke turned her head fully to look Lexa right in the eyes, "Yes… That was amazing."

Lexa's smile grew, "Still happy you wanted this now."

"Hell yes, in fact, it's my turn now." Clarke exclaimed with determination in her eyes. She used what strength she had left to unhook Lexa's bra before pushing her back on the bed.

Lexa knew where this was leading and moved to take off her pants for Clarke when Clarke's hands took ahold. "I want you to feel me undressing you this time. Trust me, it's good," Clarke winked as she slowly pulled Lexa's pants/underwear off seductively. Well, she thought it was seductive. In actuality, she struggled a tad with the extra belts on Lexa's pants used for her dagger.

"I see what you mean, Clarke," Lexa added on to Clarke's idea.

"See…" Clarke knew Lexa was lying but was happy she went with it anyways. She stopped to admire Lexa once more now that her body was up for display. Every muscle and unfortunate scar was on display for her viewing pleasure. She knew that she would be trying even more so now to win the challenge to get to view this body for the rest of her life.

Clarke leaned back into kiss Lexa wanting to pull her back into the passion they were in before Clarke climaxed. She could feel Lexa wanting more from each kiss and each touch to her body; Clarke did as requested and moved to kiss Lexa's neck again. Sucking on her pulse point, Clarke could feel Lexa shiver below her. This only pushed Clarke further to drive Lexa wanting more. She wanted Lexa to feel what a slow burn really felt like. She took her time moving her lips lower and lower, sucking on parts of golden skin as she moved until she reached her destination below. Just as Lexa did to her, she couldn't help but to blow because the pleasure she herself felt needed to be felt by Lexa as well. It was clear it was good when she felt Lexa's strong legs try to close from the pleasurable feeling. Clarke kept Lexa's legs apart with some difficulty before following Lexa's lead and connecting her lips to Lexa's mound. The taste alone was enough to make Clarke come again. She pushed the feeling down as she focused on Lexa and making her feel as good as the commander had done to her before. She used her tongue more so than anything moving along the length and even entering here and there. From the clear pleasure Lexa was feeling from the moans escaping her lips, to the brief looks down at Clarke, Clarke knew she was doing something right. Unexpectedly to Lexa, Clarke pushed a finger into the brunette and the reaction Clarke got was one she would hold onto for forever. From how wet Lexa was and the easy ability to move one finger in and out, Clarke took a chance and added in a second one getting a moan from Lexa that screamed to Clarke that Lexa was close. Minutes later, Clarke felt Lexa's body clench around her fingers as her body writhed with pleasure.

Lexa twitched for a bit as she came down from her climax and as she did and opened her eyes, she was met with Clarke's ocean blue ones, "That… was…"

"Amazing…" Clarke finished where Lexa's sentence was going. "I'd say so. The question now is, are you still with me?" She asked the question just asked to her.

Lexa smiled at her question being asked to her now. Her body shivered now that the heat from the passion was subsiding and all was left was the cold in the tent.

Clarke noticed right away, and wasted no time moving the furs and unexpected sheets out of the way for them to get under. "Better?" Clarke asked noticing Lexa's shivering subsiding.

"Yes, very much so," Lexa answered. As she laid there under the covers looking over at Clarke, "How did I ever keep my distance for so long?"

Clarke leaned in to give Lexa another kiss, "I am wondering the same thing myself. We could have been doing this longer." She couldn't help but to smile when Lexa smiled as well.

As Lexa came back to reality, a thought came back to her, "Clarke you are such a good distraction that I completely forgot why I had brought you into my tent. Now that my memory is coming back, I meant to give you a weapon for the fight." She moved over a tad so that Clarke wasn't teetering on the edge of the bed to the left of Lexa.

"A weapon? Which one?" Clarke asked now curious about which weapon Lexa would be letting her use.

"The one that I carry as commander, I thought you might want to use something that has won many battles. It has always worked for me." Lexa explained feeling like she had to justify the weapon to Clarke, for some reason.

Clarke was surprised to say the least but nodded, "I would be happy to use your sword. You do realize though that our relationship will basically be out in the open though right?"

Lexa looked up at Clarke confused for more than one reason, "How so?"

"Let me just say first that I don't care who knows about us. It doesn't matter to me if we hold hands in public or kiss. There will be people that won't understand but that won't affect how I feel about you." Clarke let that sink into Lexa and could see the little smile appear when she knew that Lexa had fully taken it in. "As for how our relationship would be out in the open. You've given me not only your jacket but you are going to let me use your sword for the challenge. If that doesn't show how much you care about me, I don't know what will."

Lexa's smile grew, "Good point. I also do not care who knows about us. I have wanted to be with you for a long time, Clarke. Even if I still fear that someone could take you away from me, like Costia was, I want this. As you said, I want you." She ran her right hand fingers along Clarke's check attempting to cup it in her casted hand, "I do not want to pretend anymore."

Clarke's smile grew, "We tried pretending, look at what that lead to." She couldn't help but to wink as she leaned in to give Lexa a sweet but short kiss. "Mm… Now I just need to win tomorrow so that we can really see where this could go. I for one want to see that."

"So do I, Clarke," Lexa couldn't help but to pull Clarke down for another peck.

Clarke continued to kiss Lexa a tad longer before pulling back conflicted, "We should really go eat. They are going to be wondering what happened to us… Again."

Lexa nodded with no intention of getting up just yet, "You may be right there but I think they will be fine without us for just a little bit longer. If they ask, we can tell them I was giving you some last minute tips for the challenge."

Clarke smiled into the kiss before pulling back, "I like how you think. I knew there was something I liked about you." She leaned back into Lexa feeling the commander's lips form into a smile at the comment.

They continued their make-out session just relishing in each other's presence. This was their moment and they weren't about to waste one minute of it.


	24. The Challenge

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Author's Note: The wait is finally over! That's right, this is the challenge chapter. It's just over 5,600 words. I should mention that when I saw 3x04 (Watch the Thrones), I lost my shit when Lexa said "Issue the challenge," I got it right. Anyways, so because of this, I have borrowed some things from 3x04 for this chapter. By some, I mean the phrase Titus says. That's about it. Everything else is all me. The challenge itself is about 1,500 words. So from that I think you can figure out how much fun I had with it.
> 
> This chapter does end in a cliff hanger. A pretty huge cliff hanger. Believe it or not, I think it might be worse than the chapter 8 cliff hanger. I have always planned for it to be a cliff hanger so I have already started writing chapter 25.
> 
> You should know that I have gone back and changed a few things in three chapters (4,13,18) in regards to Polis. I want to be able to use the idea in season 3 with Lexa being in control of everything and the only way I could do that was if I reworked parts so that it didn't include "elders" as I had originally wrote it. They are super minor changes. You might not even notice them but I thought I'd mention it for when the characters go to Polis.
> 
> There was another guest that showed their hatred for Bellamy as well but didn't give a username of some sort.
> 
> That's it, I hope you enjoy this chapter as much as I had writing it. I was able to reread it, so there should be no mistakes. :D

Chapter 24

_**DAY 11 CONTINUED…** _

Another hour passed by before Clarke and Lexa were putting their clothes back on with the intention to go eat with everyone in Camp Jaha. Clarke finished buckling up her new jacket and looked to Lexa who was strapping herself into her own jacket. She couldn't pull her eyes away from the commander carefully pulling each and every strap and tightening it around her body. Clarke's feet started moving before her mind caught up as she stopped Lexa's movements and leaned in to kiss the commander. Pulling back she stared into emerald eyes, "Maybe you're right. They don't need us out there do they?" Clarke couldn't help the smirk that appeared on her face thinking about staying in this tent until morning.

"Clarke, as much as I would love to spend the night exploring each and every part of your body, you need to keep up your strength and you need your rest for tomorrow." She reluctantly took a step back and continued to strap up her jacket as she knew that if she kissed Clarke, she'd get lost again. As she did that she continued her thought, "I would never forgive myself if I was the reason you did not win the challenge tomorrow. Even the smallest of things can change how something ends."

Clarke took a step closing the distance between the two of them as she noticed Lexa finished the last strap. "Even though I know you're right Lexa. Just know that I would like this. Promise me that we'll have a day like that after this challenge. A day we'll spend together, just you and me." She looked into emerald eyes and could see the same feeling reflected. It was clear without words that Lexa felt the same.

"I would like that…" Lexa replied. "Now we should probably be going. Your people may send out a search party soon." She waited for Clarke to exit the tent first leaving the sword behind.

As soon as Lexa exited the tent Clarke turned back, "You are probably right about that. Wouldn't want them catching us in a situation they couldn't un-see."

There was that smirk again on Clarke's face that Lexa enjoyed so much. It took everything in her being to not pull Clarke back into her tent and go several more rounds until morning light. However, she had to think about Clarke and not herself in this moment. Reluctantly, she picked up a torch near her tent and lead Clarke toward the gates of Camp Jaha.

As they approached, the gates opened up and they were able to enter the camp. One of the guards offered to take Lexa's torch, which she allowed and they continued into the camp. As they neared a rather large group around a fire, Lexa leaned into Clarke, "You sit, and I will get us some food."

Clarke nodded as she moved into the group, "Hey guys." She waved at all the faces before sitting to the left of Aleksy. The group consisted of Aleksy, Warrick, Clyde, Sierra, Raven, Octavia, Lincoln, Monty, Jasper and Maya. Clarke felt instant relief when she noticed that Bellamy wasn't a part of this group. Each one of them acknowledged her hello by waving or saying hello themselves.

Lexa joined the group moments later sitting to the left of Clarke but to the right of Monty. She ignored the tension from Monty and handed Clarke a plate. "Here you go."

"Thank you," Clarke smiled in appreciation as she did as Lexa did and dug into the food. She didn't realize how hungry she was until this moment.

"So, hey Clarke, are you going to answer my question from earlier?" Octavia asked looking over at Clarke across the fire.

Clarke scrunched her brow in confusion, "Which question was that exactly?"

"How did you two survive falling into the river? Indra made it seem like no one ever survives the rapids of that river." Octavia asked curious to know how they could survive such an impossible feat.

"Right… Well, honestly I can't really give you an answer." Clarke could see the confusion on all of the faces around her. "The last thing I remember before falling into that river is hanging off that cliff trying to hold onto Lexa. Or I mean the commander."

Lexa placed a hand on Clarke's left arm, "We are among friends, you can call me Lexa, Clarke. No need for formalities. That goes for all of you." She stated staring at the other people sitting in their group.

Clarke smiled feeling nervous for what she had to say next, "Then… um… I… Well she…"

Lexa could sense Clarke struggling with the next part of the story so she decided to step in, "Then I let go of her hand."

"I do not mean to question you, but you did what?" Octavia asked completely flabbergasted by such an action.

Lexa sighed finally seeing why this was hard for Clarke but she pushed those feelings down and explained. "It was becoming quite clear that Clarke was not going to be able to hold me long enough for someone to rescue us. And since my right arm was compromised, I could not pull myself up. So I made a decision. I would not have forgiven myself if I had dragged Clarke down with me. So I let go." She could feel the emotions from that moment bubbling up inside her and it was taking everything in her being to push them down.

"However, I didn't take her letting go of me very lightly and jumped in after her. I knew that with her injuries that she wouldn't survive long in the river so I made the decision to go in after her." Clarke added onto Lexa's story knowing that letting go was just as hard for Lexa as it was for Clarke watching her go.

"So if you were able to keep her afloat down the river, Clarke, why didn't you try to stop midway down the river?" Raven asked butting in before Octavia could ask the question.

"That's the thing, once I hit the water, the next thing I knew I was waking up on the shore of a lake, a few meters away from Lexa. I have no idea how we survived. Whoever or whatever saved us didn't stick around for us to thank them." Clarke finished off the story and looked around at everyone else who was still quite confused.

"That's very odd." Octavia stated. "One would think that saving the commander would be reason enough to stick around."

Clarke shrugged, "I guess not. We may never know who saved us." She tossed a berry into her mouth.

They all sat with that knowledge swirling around in their minds when Sierra spoke up randomly, "Hey Clarke," She watched Clarke look up from her food. "That jacket you're wearing. Is that Lexa's?"

Unconsciously, Clarke looked down at the jacket before answering, "Yes it is, why?"

"Wait, Clarke, what happened to your blue jacket?" Raven asked again butting into a conversation she didn't actually start.

"Raven, you were there, I found it in the forest by that object. When we came back, I gave it to Abby, remember?" Octavia pointed out to Raven sitting next to Lincoln.

"Oh yeah…" Raven turned back to Clarke. "You could get your jacket from Abby."

"That's alright, I like this jacket better. It's warmer than the blue jacket ever was," Clarke explained to the two of them.

Sierra smirked, "That's not the only reason now is it Clarke." Everyone turned to Sierra who had her attention on Clarke and Lexa. "You only want to wear it because your lover gave it to you, isn't that right?"

"Wait… Who's Clarke's lover?" Octavia blurted out before Clarke could answer.

Sierra looked over to Octavia, "Seriously, you don't know?"

Octavia looked around confused, "No, should I?"

Sierra was completely and utterly flabbergasted, "Please tell me that I was not the only one to recognize the love those two shared even before they became anything?" She asked everyone. No one answered. "Seriously? I spent a few minutes with both of them and I could see right through their lie to my clan."

Warrick looked at Sierra confused, "Wait, the companionship was a lie?"

Sierra nodded, "Yes, very much so but I could tell even then that most people would fall for their little plan because they genuinely cared for one another. That's why I made it my mission to push them together, especially with the challenge tomorrow."

"Wait wait wait, so you're talking about Clarke and Lexa?" Octavia asked Sierra but pointed toward Clarke and Lexa across the fire pit.

"Yes!" Sierra exclaimed as someone finally got what she was saying. "You're seriously telling me that none of you recognized their feelings for one another?"

"This is what I am talking about Sierra!" Lexa broke into the conversation. "You are nosy! No one cared if Clarke and I were becoming closer because it was none of their business."

"So you admit to giving Clarke that jacket?" Sierra ignored Lexa's anger toward her and went straight for the personal questions.

"Yes, this jacket is one of mine. If you hadn't noticed, Clarke has not been wearing anything particularly warm as of late. It only made sense for me to give her something to wear." Lexa defended to Sierra. She knew she didn't need to explain why she did anything but when it came to Sierra, she always felt that she needed to.

"And then you two showed up late to dinner, why is that?" Sierra smirked knowing she was crossing a line but she enjoyed watching Lexa sweat.

"Okay, that's enough." Clarke jumped into the conversation because she knew Lexa was at wit's end. She had been witness to what happens when Lexa feels like she's being pushed too far like with Bellamy, she didn't want to see that with Sierra. "Sierra, you know that if you don't stop pushing, nothing good will come from it."

Sierra shrugged, "True, but it's one of my favorite things about my friendship with Lexa. We enjoy pushing each other's buttons. Yes, there have been some fights. Some almost challenges but it's all in good fun."

Clarke turned to Lexa to find out if this was true.

"She's right," Lexa admitted. "She and I have a very strange friendship."

"So basically, moral of this story is that Clarke and Lexa are in a relationship. The jacket is Lexa's, end of story," Sierra summarized the entire conversation.

Lexa just shook her head finishing off the food on her plate.

Everyone went quiet as they stared at the fire just enjoying this short moment of peace. A couple of hours pass by, everyone talking from time to time. As the time was nearing midnight, everyone decided to disperse because they knew that Clarke needed her rest. They knew that if they stayed up, she'd want to stay up too.

Clarke walked with Lexa to the gates of Camp Jaha. As they approached, the guard handed Lexa the torch and opened the gates.

Lexa turned around to face Clarke, "You should sleep in your own bed tonight, Clarke. I will bring my sword to the challenge tomorrow for you."

"Lexa, I told you, I want to spend as much time with you as possible," Clarke tried to defend her position to the commander.

"I know… but I also know that you being near me might prevent you from getting any sleep. You need to do this for us." Lexa moved closer to Clarke pulling her into her space as best she could holding onto a torch. "I want you. I want what we have to grow but that will only happen if you win the challenge tomorrow. You need your rest. Do this for our future."

Clarke sighed in defeat, "You win this one. As Sierra would say, a point goes to you." She tried to find light in the situation as best as she could. "Before you go, I could use a goodnight kiss…" Clarke leaned in before Lexa had a chance to answer. Their lips connected, a kiss filled with love. Moments later, Clarke pulled back to look into emerald eyes. "I will see you tomorrow." She stated before reluctantly pulling away and walking away.

Lexa watched Clarke go for a bit before turning around herself and heading toward her tent a little irked at herself for convincing Clarke to not spend the night with her.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

_**DAY 12 – CHALLENGE DAY** _

A little over seven hours pass and Clarke found herself lying awake in her bed. A bed she hadn't slept in for some time now. She had gotten used to the grounder beds with the furs. She stared up at the ceiling and no matter what she tried, she couldn't fall back asleep. There was one person on her mind and she knew that if she didn't go to them, she'd never fall back asleep. So she made the decision to break the promise and got dressed again. With her warm jacket wrapped around her she headed for the gates.

"Hi, can you open the gates for me?" Clarke asked one of the guards at the gate.

"I'm sorry but we can't be opening the gates at this hour. Anything could be out there," The guard explained.

Clarke looked at him confused, "What is the purpose of having a joint camp with the grounders outside those walls if we can't go to them whenever we feel like it?"

"I am sorry, I'm just following orders," he tried to defend but could see that wasn't sitting with Clarke.

"You are aware that I am going to be fighting for my life in a few hours yes?" She asked knowing he knew.

He nodded, "Yes, I am aware."

"Okay, do you also know that I am dating the grounder commander?" Clarke asked having no filter at this hour.

"Uh… no, I was not aware of that," he stumbled over his words.

"She is in that camp right outside these walls. Now, I want to be able to spend some time with her before I may or may not die so you have two options here." Clarke held back her anger toward this guard. "Number one, you let me through this gate so that I can go to her. Or number two, I find an alternative route out of this camp and you get the job of telling my mother that you have no idea where it is that I went. Now I personally, would not want to deal with that wrath, but that's just me."

He weighed his options before turning to the guy manning the pulling for the gate, "Open the gate."

"Good choice," Clarke watched as the gate opened enough for her to leave and without a second look she ran out of the gate with her flashlight in her hand. She didn't want the guard to change his mind before she got out so she wasted no time to get from the gate into the almost completely rebuild grounder village.

It didn't take long before Clarke was standing in front of Lexa's tent. She could hear movement in the tent and even a flicker of a single candle so she switched off her flashlight and entered. Once she entered, she came face to face with Lexa putting on her wrist guards. "Lexa…"

Lexa looked up to the voice, "Clarke, what are you doing awake?" She asked half irked that Clarke is not getting rest and half hoping Clarke had come looking for her.

"I couldn't sleep so I came to see if you were awake or not," Clarke admitted so easily.

"I also could not sleep," Lexa admitted.

They stood there for a few minutes not saying anything until Clarke broke the silence with a question, "Um, since I am about to fight for my life, is there any chance that you could show me how you braid your hair so that I can do the same for mine?"

"I could braid your hair for you if you would like," Lexa suggested wanting this so that she could be close to Clarke.

Clarke nodded, "I would like that."

"Alright, come over her. I'll sit on my throne and you sit on the ground in front." Lexa walked over and moved her chair back a bit so that Clarke had more room to sit down.

Clarke sat down in front of Lexa feeling an additional sense of calm when Lexa's hands came in contact with her hair. She could feel every touch, every movement Lexa made to pull her blonde locks back out of her face and into braids. The awake-ness Clarke was feeling was losing its strength and she could feel herself falling asleep as she sat there. She needed to stay awake so she pulled herself together enough to ask a question that was asked a few days before. "Do you remember that promise I had asked you a few days ago?"

Lexa froze and stopped her movements for a moment before continuing, "What about it?"

"I understand what you were saying, that you can't tell me you would move on if I were to in fact die today but Lexa; I need to know that you will at least try." She could sense that Lexa was conflicted because her swift movements weren't so swift anymore. They were slower as though she wanted to prevent Clarke from looking at her now. "I'm not going into the challenge thinking that I will die today. I have more to fight for than I ever did. When I was challenged, I wanted to win to prove that I could learn how to fight well enough in such a short amount of time, as well as live for my friends and family. But now… the truth is… you are who I am fighting for. I want to see what you and I could become. So above all else, I am fighting for us. I intend on doing everything in my power to stay alive, to win this challenge but in the small chance that I might not make it… I need to know."

Lexa's actions froze once more before she spoke, "Even though I cannot think that way, how about we say that I will try? Clarke, I cannot think about a life without you and you should know that if that in fact happens. That you die, I will avenge you. One way or another, he is going to die on that battlefield. I just hope that he does by your hands and not mine." She admitted as she finished the remaining braids on top of her head and tied them up with a band.

Clarke turned around and kneeled in front of Lexa to gain some height, "I will try my best to make sure he dies by my hands or more accurately your sword in my hands." She smiled at the added reference to her using Lexa's sword for the challenge.

"Come, let us go meditate before the challenge begins," Lexa suggested to Clarke.

"Good idea," Clarke stood up and put out a hand for Lexa to get up before the both of them exited her tent and found a suitable place to meditate before the challenge.

XXXXXXXXXXXX

A few hours pass by before Clarke and Lexa were making their way back to the grounder village where the challenge would occur. They walked toward the battlefield and noticed quite quickly both sky people and grounders alike were surrounding the battle grounds in anticipation for the challenge to occur.

Lexa pulled Clarke toward her tent which most noticed as Lexa's tent wasn't too far from the battle grounds but of those who noticed, they knew about the relationship between Clarke and Lexa so it was clear they wanted a few moments alone.

Once inside the tent, Lexa turned around to Clarke, "This is it, are you ready?"

Clarke nodded, "Yes, I am ready." She could sense something off with Lexa. "Are you okay?"

Lexa let out a breath she wasn't aware she was holding in, "I wish I could say yes but this is affecting me more than I would like it to." Instantly she could see fear jump across Clarke's features. "Do not think that Clarke. I know you. Right now, you must be thinking that if you had not told me how you feel, I would not feel this way. You are wrong. I would have felt worse not knowing the truth." She pulled Clarke into her embrace. "I believe in your abilities, I believe you can do this. You just need to believe in yourself. Forget everyone else. Forget what I or someone else may be feeling. Am I afraid that I might lose you today? Yes but I know you can do this."

Clarke leaned in and connected her lips with Lexa's at the show of affection. Even in this moment, Lexa wasn't afraid to show her true colors and Clarke wasn't about to let that go without a kiss.

After a few additional pecks, Lexa pulled back to look Clarke in the eyes, "Alright, we can go out there when you are ready."

Clarke took a couple additional breaths in and out. She wiped the tears that had formed in her eyes and began taking buckles apart on the jacket Lexa had given her.

Lexa stopped her hands, "What are you doing?"

"Lexa, as much as I would love to wear this jacket, I just don't want to risk it restricting my movements. I trained in just my thin long sleeve shirt. I never had a chance to move in the jacket so I would rather wear something I know I can move in rather than risk it in something I'm unsure about." Clarke explained as she continued to unhook all of the buckles on the jacket.

"Take off your shirt Clarke," Lexa asked as she moved around her tent looking for the shirt she was wearing until they arrived back here.

"Uh… Lexa I don't think that that is something we should be doing while everyone is waiting for us," Clarke pointed out as she chose not to take off her shirt.

Lexa found what she was looking for and brought it back to Clarke, "Clarke, I cannot let you go into the challenge without any armor of any kind. This shirt of mine, even without one piece of armor on the shoulder is more protective than the shirt you are wearing. If Cyrus swipes his sword, it may not completely cut through this compared to you definitely bleeding with that shirt. So take off your shirt and put this one on." She asked again waiting for Clarke to do as she asked.

Clarke finally gave in and did as she was asked and removed her shirt in one fluid motion. She took Lexa's shirt that she clearly remembered Lexa wearing in the gorilla attack, before she put in on herself. It felt as snug as the shirt she was just wearing but could feel the additional chain mail across her entire top half. "This feels good."

"Also, take these," Lexa handed the wrist guards she was just wearing as well as the gloves to Clarke. She then moved to put her shoulder guard with the long red cloth on to her left shoulder.

With ease Clarke put the wrist guards on as well as the gloves. "How do I look? Do I look protected now?"

"You look much better Clarke." Lexa agreed. "Shall we?"

"Yes," Clarke nodded as she moved to walk out of the tent.

Lexa moved to grab her sword on the nearby table and followed Clarke out of the tent. The crowd erupted as Clarke walked into the battle grounds with Lexa following behind. Cyrus came out of the crowds and walked into the middle as well. Lexa raised her left hand in the air and the entire crowd quieted down.

"We are gathered here today to witness a challenge like none other," Lexa began loud enough for each to hear. "This challenge is between Clarke of Skaikru and Cyrus of Trikru. We have never had a challenge between two different people before. Two trained in different fighting styles. As most know, in single combat there is but one rule, someone must die here today." Lexa watched the grounder part of the crowd erupt in excitement leaving the sky people to watch in fear for Clarke. "You may begin!"

Cyrus moved to one side of the battle ground to retrieve his sword from one of his friends.

Clarke turned to Lexa who held out the sheath for her sword, "Remember all your training." Lexa instilled in Clarke as she held onto the sheath.

Clarke nodded as she grabbed and pulled the handle of Lexa's Katana from the sheath. She immediately felt the different weight of the sword but it didn't scare her, it made her even more so determined to prove that she could do this.

Lexa moved off to the side where Sierra, Aleksy, Clyde and Warrick were standing. She knew they would keep the hope alive for Clarke and she needed that during this battle. She needed something to hold her back from killing Cyrus herself. That is one of the main reasons she left her sword back in her tent.

Clarke moved around on the grounds waiting for her moment to strike when Cyrus wasted no time rushing toward her with his sword. She took a step to the right and slashed her sword into his back. He turned around with a fire and swung his sword at Clarke. Their swords clashed with tings here and there. She shoved him back and took a swing, her right hand connecting with his jaw.

Cyrus stumbled back surprised that she was able to get a punch in, "You really have done it haven't you?"

"Done what?" Clarke asked him shaking her right hand from the blow.

"You have become a worthy opponent," Cyrus smirked. "The question is, just how good of a fighter are you."

She knew he was trying to egg her on enough to make her make a mistake but she was smarter than him. It was clear what he was doing so she chose to play into his hand and then surprise him. She swung her sword at him, he blocked her and they were stuck. This bigger man was holding his sword against her with no trouble but Clarke was weaker and she knew that. She knew that if he continued to push, he'd win right here, right now so she tried the movement that Lexa and Sierra had taught her. Back then she had gotten it easy. Then again, she was practicing against women of similar build. She attempted the maneuver, but he figured out what she was doing and moved his leg to trip her. Her body fell to the ground dropping her sword from the fall, her head banging into the equally hard ground.

It was a split second moment, she could see his sword coming toward her, the crowd's breath caught in their throats, when she took out her dagger swiping his sword enough for it not to stab her in the chest. However, it didn't move enough as she felt the blade slice through the chain mail and cut into her left side. The adrenaline from the fight kept the pain at bay as she sliced his hand holding the blade so he dropped his sword. She moved to get back up, picking up her sword in the movement. As she did, she moved her hand to touch the blood seeping from her left side with her right hand. Her fingers were covered in blood just as she noticed it drip away. Looking up into the sky to see what had caused this; she was met with rain falling from above.

Cyrus stood back up picking up his sword wasting no time launching at her, and he was able to get to her without needing a sword, he swung his right fist as hard as he could connecting with her left cheek and jaw. From the momentum of the blow, she stumbled to her right hitting the ground hard. She pulled herself up onto her hands and knees trying to shake the cloudy feeling from her head so she could get up. As she did, Cyrus took advantage and kicked her right in the left side, his foot connected with her stomach knocking her over. The wind had been completely knocked out of her and she lay on the ground for a second.

He thought he'd won as he looked toward her from where he was standing about a meter away.

People in the crowd chanted her name; she could hear numerous people trying to coax her back on her feet even though she felt like she'd been defeated. As the thought popped in her mind, she'd narrowed in on one voice in the crowd.

"Clarke, get up! I can't lose you."

Clarke could hear the sadness and determination in the voice. She knew instantly that the voice belonged to Lexa. With that, she pulled herself back onto her feet. She had made a promise that she would not go down so easily. Clarke looked toward Cyrus tasting blood in her mouth. She collected as much of the blood as she could before spitting it off to the side of her.

Cyrus couldn't help but to smirk ignoring the pain in his right hand from the damage Clarke did to it with her dagger, "You should just give up Clarke! It is clear as to which one of us is going to lose here." He yelled out over the rain pounding down on them.

"This fight is not over until you die!" She yelled back feeling a new found determination that she hadn't felt in a long time.

He moved toward her and she barely dodged his attack now feeling the effects of the slippery mud below her feet. She knew this was going to change things drastically. He turned back around and she swiped her sword connecting with his left arm. The blade didn't go in as far as she would have liked it to and he could tell as he took advantage of her distraction swinging his sword at her. She narrowly moved out of the way, the blade swinging past her stomach. From the attack she felt a tad woozy and as she reached to touch where she had thought the blade had missed her, her fingers came in contact with blood.

Before she lost all control of her movements due to the lack of blood in her system, she took her dagger in her right hand and swung the tip toward him with the intention of getting it into his heart. However, with her dizziness she misjudged where the blade was going and felt it stab into his left shoulder. She could hear him yell out in pain before he swung his right fist and it connected with the left side of her face once again. It felt as though that he might have broken her nose as she fell to the ground once again in a huff. She could feel her body fall stomach first into a puddle of mud. Everything hurt.

Clarke tried to get up on her knees to get back onto her feet but she couldn't do it. She was too weak. As soon as she got onto her knees, she'd fall back into the puddle. She was done. This was it. Her life was going to end here and now. Her ears were ringing from the multiple blows to her head. She could see people shouting at her but she couldn't do anything about it. The exhaustion from the fight combined with the cuts and bruises was making her head cloudy. She had no idea where Cyrus was or what he was doing. It was then that she realized that Lexa's sword was still in her left hand and because of that she felt tears sting her eyes as she searched the crowd for the owner.

In the distance to her right, she recognized that red sash anywhere so she rolled back onto her left side to get a good look at the woman she had fallen in love with. She smiled briefly happy that she had at least told Lexa the truth about her feelings for her. At least she could leave this world knowing that she had no more secrets, that she and Lexa were able to be happy for at least some time in their lives. A part of her wanted to get up again, push through the pain and make this happen but when her body tried to accomplish this, it would fall down weak. She wanted to go out better than this. To show the world that she could have won this fight. She didn't want the people she loved to remember her this way. That's when she heard him. She heard something bounce off the ground, probably her dagger, followed by heavy steps behind her. She took in deep breaths knowing that the end was coming soon. His steps stopped and she could feel his presence above her as his body was blocking some of the rain from hitting her.

Clarke took one final glance over to Lexa as she used her right hand to push off the ground rolling over, her eyes connected with the blade coming down to her and both of their eyes went wide.


	25. Challenge (Part 2)

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Okay... this is the remainder of the challenge chapter. Now this chapter is significantly shorter than chapters as of late but that's because I would like to write a time jump and felt that it would be better suited at the beginning of a chapter rather than smack dab in the middle. I'm not sure I like this chapter. I was struggling to get through it. I think it was all of the medical aspects of this chapter that was boring me. I did finish it, it's just not as long as I would have liked. It's only 3,097 words. On the bright side, next chapter we will be off to Polis. :)
> 
> I feel that I should mention something in regards to the challenge that some of you mentioned. Never once did I say that the challenge was going to be easy. I made it seem like it would be a breeze from her beating three guys or beating Lexa in a fight. However, you must keep one thing in mind. In all of her 'practice' fights, she was using wooden swords. Even if one of them had sliced her with the sword, she wouldn't have known. Whereas here in the challenge, she doesn't have that luxury and never had a chance to learn what it might feel like for a blade to slice through flesh. So when she barely prevented herself from being stabbed in the chest and his sword sliced into her left side, it disoriented her. Thus everything she did after that point clouded her judgment from trying to stab him to dodging further attacks or being hit in the face. Hopefully that clears things up.
> 
> If you don't know already, both on Spotify and ITunes, you can check out the 100 Season 3 soundtrack from Tree Adams. It includes a 7 min score track of Clarke and Lexa. I suggest you check it out. It's awesome. It even includes songs we haven't heard yet.
> 
> I was able to reread, so there shouldn't be any mistakes.
> 
> I hope you enjoy.

Chapter 25

A minute or two ago, Cyrus looked over to the body lying on the ground and the thought of letting her live went out of his mind. The pain from the knife in his shoulder subsided from the anger he felt for letting someone of Skaikru get an advantage over him. In all of the time that Skaikru was on the ground, his people have always had the upper hand yet in this moment; one was able to get an upper hand on him. This was not sitting well with him. With no difficulty, he grabbed the handle on the dagger and yanked it out. He bit back the pain from the dagger leaving his shoulder as he tossed it on the ground. He was done with this fight and was going to end it right here, right now. It only took a few steps for him to get to her. He looked down at her body and could see very clearly that she was not getting up any time soon. This fight was his and she didn't have a chance but to lose. He lifted his sword into the air gripping it with both hands, ignoring the pain in his left shoulder. As he swung his sword down to kill Clarke once and for all, she surprised him by turning over.

Clarke pushed off with her right hand to get enough momentum for one more attempt to kill him; she lifted her sword in the movement pushing it out as she rolled almost completely onto her right side. She could feel her blade connect with flesh shoving in deeper and deeper into his chest as he came down farther. Surprise was seen in both of their eyes. Clarke was surprised this actually worked and Cyrus was surprised that Clarke was able to take him out.

His body slid down the sword and as he did blood filled his mouth and lungs making it harder to breath as his sword connected with Clarke's left arm before he completely lost his grip. He attempted to grab the sword in his chest before he felt her let go of the sword; he fell to his knees before tipping over and falling into mud.

Clarke didn't see him hit the ground. As she let go of the handle, she fell into blackness as the combination of exhaustion and loss of blood overwhelmed her. The last thing she remembered seeing was that red sash running toward her.

Lexa watched the scene in front of her and when she was sure the fight was over, she waved down Abby's medical team to head to Clarke before turning to Indra, "Let's go!" She arrived at Clarke's side seconds later, she turned to Indra, "Make sure he's dead, and if he's not, ensure he is."

"Commander, the rules…" Indra didn't want to question her commander but she also didn't want to lose her friend for such a small mistake.

"I do not care about the rules! He did this to Clarke. I want him dead; do not make me ask you again." Lexa stated with force.

Indra nodded, "Yes commander." She checked for a pulse and when she could feel none she looked back to Lexa, "He is dead."

Lexa nodded before she looked back to Clarke as Abby and a couple others appeared next to her. Her whole demeanor changed in this moment as she looked upon the woman she had fallen in love with, "Please be okay." She whispered to herself but Abby had heard.

"Lexa, we are going to take her back to the med bay, we will take care of her," Abby tried to comfort Lexa as her team got Clarke onto a backboard.

"I am not leaving her side," Lexa looked from Clarke to Abby, tears stinging her eyes.

Abby nodded, "Alright then, let's get her to medical."

They all lifted her up, Abby packing some gauze into her left side cut keeping it there as they moved making sure she didn't lose any additional blood.

XXXXXXXXXXX

Moments later, they arrived in the medical bay and placed Clarke onto one of the beds. Abby tried to use scissors to get the shirt off but because of the chain mail it didn't work.

Lexa went straight for a few of the buckles on the armor and pulled them off easily before moving Clarke's arms up to pull the top right off.

Abby looked at Lexa, "Well that wasn't what I would have done but thanks."

"You would not have gotten this off with the instruments you have in this room. This was the only option," Lexa pointed out as she helped to hold gauze over Clarke's stomach wound as Abby worked on the left side.

Jackson brought Abby a suture kit for the couple of cuts on Clarke as well as a few bags of blood. He attached the blood bag on the IV stand and attached the IV into Clarke's right wrist.

"Hold the gauze here," she looked at Jackson as she went to grab what she needed from the kit. "Lexa, I'll suggest again, you do not need to be here for this."

Lexa shook her head, "I need to be here for her. I will help however I can, but I am not leaving." She removed the blood soaked gauze she had on the stomach wound and replaced it with fresh gauze.

Abby grabbed some disinfectant and was happy that Clarke had passed out from the pain as this would have stung. She poured some of the disinfectant onto a cloth and dabbed it on the wound to get all of the mud out of the wound. Once she was sure no more mud was in the wound she turned to Jackson to help her close the rather large cut in Clarke's left side, before she went to work to stitch it up.

They continued with their work in silence for quite a while. Abby finished stitching up the wound on Clarke's left side before attaching a large amount of gauze and taping it up. She looked at the small cut on her left arm from Cyrus' blade falling on her and just wrapped it up with a roll of gauze. Then, she moved over to Clarke's right side to examine the cut on Clarke's stomach and with Lexa's help, they used a couple stitches to close the wound. It wasn't as deep as the one in Clarke's left side so it didn't need as much. Again, Abby attached some gauze and taped it up as well. Now that she was sure Clarke wasn't bleeding anymore, she went to look at her face because she had seen how hard Cyrus hit her.

Lexa just stood there in silence. She didn't know how to help in this situation but she also knew she couldn't just walk away either so she did the only thing she could think of which was to hold Clarke's left hand with her left.

Abby checked Clarke's jaw and found that it was still connected, no dislocation. Then she moved to Clarke's nose, she felt along the ridge with her fingers and couldn't feel anything out of place. However, she was sure that Clarke would have at least one black eye from this, maybe even two.

Lexa became lost in thought as she watched Abby finish looking Clarke over. She even watched the doctor replace the blood bag and add a clearer bag attaching that to the IV as well. Her thoughts were stuck on Clarke. She looked so broken and Lexa wanted more than anything to be able to do something. Lexa felt so useless in this moment as she took in every single cut, scrape and bruise created from the challenge that one of her own had created. She was so lost in thought that she didn't notice Abby bring her a chair to sit on until she noticed Abby sit in another chair across from her. However she chose to stand.

Abby's voice brought her out of her thoughts, "I can let you know when she wakes if you would like to leave."

"No, I am not leaving her side. One of my people did this to her. I am not going to leave until I know that she will be okay," Lexa held back tears she could feel forming in her eyes. She did not want to look weak in front of Clarke's mother. A thought popped into her mind and she was scared to ask the question but needed to know the answer to it. "Do you… do you think she will wake up from this?" She paused for a second before explaining exactly why she'd ask such a thing. "Being the commander, I have lost many people in my life and of those that did not die they were stuck like this destined to never wake up. If this is to be Clarke's fate, I would rather know now than wait with the idea that she might wake up."

"Lexa, you know as well I do, that Clarke is strong. She has been through more than anyone should go through in such a short amount of time. With that said, I cannot say whether she will or will not wake up. Only time will tell." Abby explained to the best of her abilities as she picked up a blanket and wrapped it around Clarke's body. Her top half would most definitely be getting cold soon. The ark was already cold but with the change of weather, it would be getting colder.

Lexa nodded as she looked upon Clarke's sleeping form lifting her left hand up so that it wasn't covered by the blanket.

XXXXXXXX

Hours pass by; Lexa sat on the stool for some of that time but most of it she found herself pacing the room. Sitting still was not something she could do so easily. Waiting for Clarke to wake up was a hard thing for Lexa. She wanted so bad to hold her in her arms. To kiss her and tell her everything would be okay but she couldn't. She couldn't protect her and now the commander was stuck waiting.

Abby was looking at the bags on the IV when she noticed Clarke's head move, "Clarke?"

Lexa's attention was grabbed by Abby's voice and took a few steps back to Clarke's left side. "Clarke?" She repeated what Abby had asked.

Slowly emerald eyes met blue eyes, as Clarke opened her eyes. Her eyes noticed Lexa first, "Lex…" Her voice trailed off, her throat feeling coarse and dry.

"Just wait Clarke," Abby walked over and picked up a glass of water before walking back over. "Here, take a sip of this." She helped her daughter take a sip from the cup.

Clarke nodded in appreciation for the water before looking down and noticing all of the bandages on her body, "What happened? Did I win?"

Lexa couldn't help the tears that formed in her eyes as she nodded, "Yes. You won. Cyrus is dead."

Clarke tried to lift her left arm up to wipe a tear that was running down Lexa's face but as she did she felt pain in her side and moaned out before lowering her arm. "I won? That's surprising. I don't feel like I won." She tried to laugh in light of the situation but felt pain in her left side again.

"You've bruised your ribs Clarke, laughter may not be a wise choice," Abby added in as she moved a stray strand of hair out of Clarke's face. "How are you feeling? Any pain anywhere?"

"Can I say everywhere?" Clarke asked smiling but holding back a laugh so that she didn't feel pain again. "Any chance I could get a shirt?"

Abby nodded, "Yes, let me go and retrieve one for you." The doctor left the room off in search of a shirt for Clarke.

"Lexa…" When Clarke was sure she had gotten Lexa's attention she continued. "I was sure that I was going to…"

Lexa shook her head, "You didn't. You are alive, Clarke. You really scared me there when it seemed that you were not going to get up. I wanted so much to run to you and protect you."

"But you couldn't, Lexa." Clarke finished of Lexa's thought.

"I know, but you killed him. You killed him with no one's help. I am so proud of you." Lexa leaned in and connected her lips to Clarke's in a short sweet peck. It was just long enough to express how grateful she was that Clarke was still alive.

"That's not true; I did it with your help. If it wasn't for you, I might not have beaten him today. You believed in me, Lexa. Thank you," Clarke smiled. "I wanted to win for you and our future. In those final moments, I found every single piece of energy that I could and thrust your sword into him."

"Let's stop thinking about the challenge, Clarke. It is over. There is no need to continue to talk about it. Let us just stop and think about our future." Lexa suggested as she wiped away tears that were falling from her eyes.

Clarke smiled, "I would like that. You still have to teach me how to swim." She changed the subject in hopes that they'd both stop crying.

Lexa smiled, "Well, that will have to wait until after winter. How about I teach you how to make your own sword when we go to Polis?"

"How are you going to do that with a cast on?" Clarke asked the obvious question as she noticed Lexa awkwardly holding her hand with the cast. "You can't even hold my hand properly."

"Clarke, I have been making swords for as long as I can remember. I will make it work, do not worry," Lexa explained very vaguely.

Just then, Abby came back into the room with a button up shirt she had found in her own room, "Okay, sit up slowly."

Clarke did as asked and with some help from Lexa supporting her left arm and her back, she sat up groaning as she did. She put her right arm into the right sleeve and Lexa helped her put her left arm into the left sleeve before leaning back down on the inclined bed. She attempted to button it up but she was still feeling woozy and couldn't focus enough to do it.

Abby took both sides of the shirt and buttoned it up for her daughter. "There, better?"

Clarke nodded, "Yes, thank you." She yawned as she felt a tad warmer feeling a pain in her side from the movement. "Uh… having bruised ribs is going to be tough."

"As long as you take things slow, Clarke, you will be fine." Abby point out as she placed a comforting hand on Clarke's right shoulder.

"How long is slow exactly? As in when will I be able to go to Polis? I am sure Lexa will not be able to push that trip much longer." Clarke asked Abby but got an answer from Lexa.

"Clarke, I will wait for you, as long as it takes." Lexa cut into the conversation wanting to make sure Clarke knew she wasn't pulling her from her duties as commander.

"Well, because of the deep cut on your left side, I would not want the stitches to come out so you need to stay in bed for a minimum of a week. It might be longer," Abby explained as she thought about her answer.

"I have to lay in bed for a week?" Clarke asked wanting nothing more than to just be with Lexa. "Does it have to be this bed?"

"It has to be this bed for at least forty-eight hours. After that, you may be able to move to your own bed," Abby indicated specifically saying her own bed as she knew what these two were actually thinking.

Clarke nodded her head as another yawn took over her body causing her to groan once again from the pain in her left side.

"Clarke, sleep, I will be here when you wake up," Lexa leaned in and kissed Clarke on her forehead.

Clarke closed her eyes at the sweet gesture, "Good idea." She barely got out being she actually dozed off.

"Can you watch her? I am going to go let our friends know that she is going to be okay." Lexa asked Abby before passing by when she got a nod of confirmation.

Lexa took in a deep breath and wiped her eyes of any remaining tears before exiting the ark into the open air. She always loved this time of year as the leaves started to change color and the added scents in the air as she looked out for the first snowfall. Her thoughts were interrupted as a group came walking up to her.

"How's Clarke?" Sierra was the first to get a question in.

"Yeah, is she going to be okay?" Raven asked next to Sierra.

Lexa nodded, "Yes, Clarke has awoken. She is going to be okay. It will take time for her injuries to correct themselves but she is going to be okay."

"Can we see her?" Octavia asked next.

Lexa shook her head, "No, Clarke needs her rest. Maybe later you can see her but for now just know that she is going to be okay."

As the others felt better and walked away, Sierra stayed behind and moved closer to Lexa, "How are you doing?"

Lexa looked at Sierra confused. "Why would you ask me that? Clarke was the one fighting for her life."

"True, but I had to stand on the sidelines with you. I know watching her get hit or cut had to be hard for you, even harder for you to watch her get patched back up. Lexa I know you like to appear like nothing fazes you but it's okay to feel this. She almost died." Sierra spoke quietly so that those around them couldn't hear her. "I just want you to know that I am here to talk."

"I know you are Sierra, and I appreciate it." Lexa gave a weak smile. "Now I should probably be getting back to her. I told her I would be there when she wakes up again. I do not want to be seen as a liar."

"I understand, go be with your girl." Sierra smiled as she watched Lexa turn around to go back into the ark.


	26. Chapter 26

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Author's note: Hello everyone. I know it's been a while since I posted a chapter. I've been incredibly busy with barely any moments to work on this chapter. On top of that I was having issues trying to get this chapter a way I liked. With help from Clonedanceparty, I was able to find a version I thought worked for this story and I have to say I really like this version. I think you guys will too. It really shows off just how much Lexa cares for Clarke. To make up for the lack of updates, and well I just got lost in writing Clarke and Lexa, this chapter is a whopping 6,253 words.
> 
> Oh and if you haven't heard the song: "Legendary Lovers by Katy Perry," I suggest checking it out. It reminds me of Clarke and Lexa a lot. In the sense of them being legendary. Another good one you guys should check out is: "Fight Song/Amazing Grace by The Piano Guys." It's a beautiful score song that just works for us as a whole. Clexakru keeping Lexa alive in our worlds now that she's not in the show.
> 
> The last almost 2,000 words haven't been proofread as I got a little carried away finishing off the chapter and don't have time to proofread if I want to post it today.
> 
> Anyways, I hope you enjoy this chapter. Please leave me a review.

Chapter 26

About two days later, Clarke was more coherent and was able to say a proper goodbye to her new friends. "Do you guys really need to go back so soon?" She asked looking at Warrick, Aleksy and Clyde.

Aleksy nodded, "Yes, unfortunately as much as we would love to stay and continue training with you, we have an obligation to our clan."

"Besides Clarke, once you are up and running again, you have the commander to train you. Sure, there are things we could train you on but she is one that most would dream to train with," Clyde pointed out knowing so many warriors that had the opportunity to learn from Lexa.

"That is a good point," Clarke nodded remembering back to when she was just learning how to fight. Lexa had been a pretty excellent teacher.

"Just promise us something," Warrick spoke up behind Aleksy and Clyde. "When you get better, you better visit us at some point." He moved past the other two to put out his arm to her.

Clarke reached out with her right hand to grab onto Warrick's right arm, "You have a deal."

Clyde smiled in excitement, "Then I guess we will see you around then Clarke."

"Yes you will," Clarke smiled.

"Clarke, before we walk out that door, I just have to say that it has been an honor training with you. I think I can say that for the three of us," Aleksy looked at Clyde and Warrick and watched them nod before looking back to Clarke.

Clarke nodded, "It goes both ways, I learned a lot from the three of you."

Warrick could feel the emotions in the air changing to mushy and he was not okay with it, "Well, I am going to get out of here before the hugging begins. You get better Clarke, I will see you again." With that he walked out of the room.

"What was that?" Clarke asked to no one in particular.

Clyde answered, "Warrick likes to seem tough. He does not like emotional moments." He chuckled. "I second what he said though. Get better, okay? Please do not push yourself, if you do, you will pay for it. Trust me, I know."

Aleksy chuckled at that, "Oh yeah, that time you fell from the tree. You tried to just walk it off, that did not work out well."

"Wait, you fell out of a tree?" Clarke asked Clyde not feeling so bad now that she herself had fallen from many trees while training.

Aleksy butted in before Clyde could answer half laughing, half speaking, "Yeah, it was… so funny." Paused and spoke in a serious tone, "He fell far, so I am glad he's okay," back to laughing, "but it was so funny. All I remember is him going up into a tree to get some kind of fruit and he misjudged how much weight a branch could hold. Needless to say, it broke and he came crashing down. The branches he came in contact with slowed his approach so when he hit the ground it was not as bad as it could have been."

Clyde looked to Aleksy, "Really? You couldn't have even tried to make that seem more badass? There is a beautiful woman in front of us right now."

Clarke looked at them curious about the statement, "You guys do know I'm taken right?"

Aleksy elbowed Clyde before Clyde answered, "Yes, but hey if that does not work out, you know I am available…" He insinuated smiling as he put out his hands weighing the options.

"Alright Clyde, if Lexa and I ever break up, I'll look you up." Clarke chuckled as she responded.

"Yes," he pulled his fist down in triumph!

"Even though that's highly unlikely," Clarke pointed out making sure he's aware that that moment may never come.

He shrugged his shoulders, "Oh well, it was worth a shot. Anyways, Warrick is probably wondering what happened to us. You get better okay? Don't do what I did. Trying to walk off an injury after falling out of a tree was not my smartest idea."

"I will keep that in mind," Clarke nodded. "Before you guys leave, can you do something for me?"

They nodded as they moved in closer to hear what Clarke had to say. She whispered her idea to them and then waved to them goodbye. "I'll see you guys around."

"Bye Clarke," they exclaimed in unison. As they walked outside, the two of them wrapped their arms around Warrick in a big bear hug.

Warrick was startled at first and then moved his arms to shake them off, "What the hell are you two doing?"

"Clarke asked us to give you a hug from her," Aleksy answered while laughing.

"You two told her that I do not like mushy moments, didn't you?" Warrick asked already knowing the answer to his question.

They both nodded in unison.

"Of course," he shook his head. "Can we go now?"

They nodded again.

"Yeah, let's go. It's going to be a long trek." Clyde answered as he started making his way toward the horses they had brought out before going in to say their goodbyes.

As Aleksy made his way to the horses, "Where is Sierra? Is she not coming back with us?"

Clyde shook his head, "No, Sierra said she was going to stay until Clarke is better either that or she just wants an excuse to go to Polis with them." He answered as he pulled himself up onto his horse.

Warrick pulled himself onto his horse, "Of course she wants to go to Polis. It's probably been many years since she went to our capital. I can understand that need."

Aleksy agreed after his second attempt to get onto his horse. He always misjudged how much momentum was needed to gap the height difference from him to the horse to get up onto the saddle. It always took two to three tries. "Hey, we could make a detour and go to Polis before going home." He suggested.

Warrick looked at Aleksy confused as he pulled the reins directing the horse to the gates, "Why would we need to go to Polis?"

"Well Clarke is probably going to go there soon so we could meet her there," Aleksy tried to convince the other two.

"Aleksy, Clarke probably won't be going there for weeks. Besides, we have no use in going to Polis," Clyde pointed out the obvious. They all just saw Clarke. Her injuries were pretty bad.

"Ah, good point, guess home it is," Aleksy agreed as they led their horses out of the gates toward the forest line.

XXXXXXXXX

Lexa walked into the infirmary moments later, "Clarke, how are you feeling?" She asked hoping for good news.

"The same, in pain, but my mom is keeping up with the drugs so I'm not too bad but any movement hurts like you would not believe," Clarke admitted with ease. Maybe it was the drugs making her more open or maybe she just felt comfortable talking to Lexa. Either way, there was no holding back.

Lexa nodded as she sat down on a stool that she had pulled closer to the left of Clarke's bed, not knowing how else to respond.

Clarke noticed Lexa quietness so she added, "I am getting bored of looking at these walls though."

Lexa smiled, "Clarke, you need to be in this infirmary. Your mom needs to monitor you and I know you will be safe in here." She reached out and wrapped her hands around Clarke's left hand.

"I know I need to be in this infirmary because of my injuries. Trust me, I would not want to get up, I feel enough pain from just readjusting on the bed, I could not imagine trying to walk. However, it would be nice to get out of this place, once I can get out of this bed." Clarke hinted toward going to Polis.

"Clarke, I am already making preparations to leave for Polis. Once your week is up, and your mom says that you can get up and walk, we will go to Polis. I have been putting off my duties for far too long." Lexa explained knowing that Clarke didn't like to sit still for too long. This was something both of them could agree on.

Clarke looked at Lexa a little surprised, "The challenge only occurred two days ago and you're already getting ready to leave."

"If I was in your shoes, I would not want to sit with injuries for too long. These last few weeks should have been proof enough. Against your wishes and the pain I endured, I took my cast off to help you train. I am not one to sit by and watch the world pass me by. I figured you felt the same." Lexa explained thinking this was how Clarke would feel.

"You are correct on that front. What preparations have you made so far?" Clarke asked curious to know what Lexa could have done in just two days.

"The object, I needed to ensure that it comes with me to Polis because if your people keep it, it could look like an act of war to my people. It's unknown to both sides but my people would not know that." Lexa pointed out knowing how her people react to things. "I have spoken to Abby and with some convincing I convinced her to allow Raven to come along too as she has become the most knowledgeable of this unknown object and has the best chance of figuring out what it is and what danger it poses."

Clarke nodded, "That makes sense to me. Your people didn't react too well to my ship landing so I would imagine they wouldn't react to well to knowing that we had something they didn't have or didn't know what it was either. Have you completed anything else?"

Lexa shook her head, "No, but Lincoln did speak to me. He indicated that while we were in the Marsh clan, my advisor in Polis, Titus, requested both mine and your presence in Polis."

"Me? Why would he want me to be in Polis?" Clarke asked flabbergasted that this person she had never met would want her to come to Polis.

"I have no idea what he would like with you but rest assured, I will be speaking to him either way. He should not be giving orders," Lexa spoke irritated that Titus would do such a thing.

Clarke pulled her hand from Lexa's grip and placed it on Lexa's casted arm, "I am sure everything will be fine."

"Lincoln requested that he come along so he and Octavia will be joining us as well," Lexa completed her train of thought before looking up into ocean blue eyes. She could see the sincerity in Clarke's words in her eyes.

"Come here," Clarke beckoned wanting to kiss the woman sitting in front of her.

Lexa wasted no time standing up from her chair and leaning in to kiss Clarke. She had realized quite quickly how much she had missed the feel of Clarke's lips on hers. Pulling back moments later, she couldn't help but run her fingers along the side of Clarke's face, noticing the very prominent black eye. "Does this hurt?" She asked tracing her right fingers over the edge of the black eye.

Clarke shook her head, "Not really. It just looks really bad. I must look like a monster with this black eye and cut lip." She chuckled and quite quickly regretted it when she felt pain in her left. "Ouch."

Lexa, who was now sitting on the edge of Clarke's bed shook her head, "No, you are beautiful."

"You're just saying that, I've seen a mirror, my face does not look good," Clarke pointed out knowing she was right on this front.

"Clarke, injuries are inevitable on the ground. What matters is what is in here?" She placed her left hand over Clarke's heart. "You may not look that great on the outside but you still find a way to joke about it."

"Ha! So I do look terrible, I knew it," Clarke added in confirming her suspicions.

Lexa couldn't help but to smile at Clarke's comment, "You know I love you right?" She asked already knowing the answer to her question.

Clarke nodded, "I love you too. Oh and by the way, if you and I don't work out, Clyde has given me a very good offer that I won't be able to turn down." She tried not to smile as she held in laughter so that she didn't feel pain in her side.

Lexa sported the biggest smile Clarke had ever seen, "Well, he is dreamy so I could understand."

"Right? He's definitely a close second," Clarke couldn't hold back her laughter now and pushed the pain down to enjoy this moment. It worked for a few seconds before she clutched at her left side needing to take in slow breaths.

"Clarke, are you okay?" Lexa switched gears from one of fun to concern within a second.

Clarke nodded, "Yes, laughter just causes my side to hurt is all."

"Then why do it?" Lexa asked concerned for Clarke's well-being.

Clarke shrugged, "I can't help what I do when I'm with you. It doesn't matter how much I shouldn't do something, I'll still do it if I think you might smile. You have a beautiful smile that doesn't come out very often."

Lexa felt her skin get warm and was sure she was blushing in this moment. Usually she was good at keeping her emotions in check but it was like all of her training went out the door when she was with Clarke. Lexa watched Clarke yawn. "Well Clarke, I'll leave you to get some rest."

Clarke nodded, "That is probably a good idea. Entertaining is very exhausting while injured."

Lexa leaned in to give Clarke one more peck, "I'll see you later, okay?"

"I'll be here," Clarke pointed out the obvious before closing her eyes and letting her body let the exhaustion take her over.

Lexa smiled once more before walking out of the infirmary. As she did she almost collided with Abby on her way out. However, her quick reflexes helped her to catch the couple of packs of gauze that Abby was carrying before they hit the ground.

"Woah, Lexa, I'm so sorry," Abby apologized as she almost dropped all of the supplies she was holding.

Lexa handed her the few packs of gauze, "Do not apologize; it was me who was not paying attention," Lexa admitted knowing that she wasn't thinking about what or who may be in front of her. She had been thinking about how lucky she was meeting Clarke.

"Thank you." Abby could sense that Lexa was holding back on something and she had a feeling it was about Clarke, "You are doing everything you can to protect her. I know that, she knows that, Clarke will pull through. She's strong." Abby insisted knowing how much Lexa wanted to protect Clarke at any given moment.

Lexa nodded in agreement, "I know she's strong. I have seen it."

"Then you have nothing to worry about. She will get better and you can show her Polis." Abby looked upon Lexa trying to instill confidence into the shorter commander. When she was sure Lexa had taken what she had said to heart, she moved into the infirmary saying, "Now if you would excuse me, I have some work to get done."

"Yes, I would not want to keep you. I have work of my own that I need to attend too," Lexa stated as she turned to leave the infirmary leaving Abby to put her supplies away.

Abby watched the commander leave for a few moments wondering if she would ever forgive herself for getting Clarke into this situation. It was clear from the moment it happened, that Lexa felt that the challenge was her fault. She didn't make Cyrus do it but it was still her tradition being pushed onto Clarke. It was over, Clarke won but it didn't make this any less hard. Abby just hoped that Lexa would move forward eventually.

Lexa walked out of the ark and could feel the warm sun beating down on her, it was still relatively warm out with the seasons changing. It wasn't immensely hot, by no means, but it could be a lot colder with snow on the ground. Lexa was going to take advantage of this nice weather and go meditate somewhere within the gate walls to stay close to Clarke but challenge herself on blocking out unwanted noise.

She had found a perfect spot to sit on the grass, she knew that here there would be no fear of being trampled on but could also provide optimum ability to test her abilities.

Just as she was about to close her eyes, Sierra came walking up to Lexa, "Why are you sitting on the ground?" She asked confused.

"What can I do for you Sierra?" Lexa skipped her question to get Sierra to leave as quick as possible.

"Right to it I see, well, I heard you were going back to Polis soon." Sierra put out there hoping that she wouldn't have to explain the whole thing.

Lexa looked at Sierra confused, "Yes, I have to go back and resume my duties at some point. Why?"

Sierra sighed in frustration realizing she'd have to explain, "Well, I haven't been there in years, I wondered if I could come along."

"Is that why you didn't go back with Aleksy, Warrick and Clyde?" Lexa asked wanting Sierra to be the one to admit that she had ulterior motives for staying in Camp Jaha.

"Yes it is. So can I come or what?" Sierra asked this time instead of suggesting the idea.

Lexa shook her head in annoyance, "You can do what you want Sierra, it is not up to me what you do with your time. It is not like Polis is a place you need to be invited to. If you want to come, come, if not stay here or go home." She pointed out the obvious. This was not news to Sierra so it confused Lexa as to why she needed to say any of this to begin with.

"Alright then, I'll be coming with the two of you." Sierra jumped up in excitement.

"Okay, now can you leave me so that I can meditate," Lexa waved her hand in a motion to get Sierra to take a hint and leave.

"Alright, I got it, I'll leave you. Bye Lexa," With that Sierra left Lexa to meditate.

Finally Lexa was comfy on the grass once again, her legs crossed and her arms resting comfortably in her lap, with that she closed her eyes.

XXXXXXXXXX

About a week later, Clarke was seen walking out of the ark, the bright sunlight throwing her off for a moment. Unconsciously, she lifted her left hand to block the sunlight forgetting about the healing wound in her left side until she felt immense pain from the movement. "Ohhh… that was not a good idea," she mumbled in pain as she stood tall clutching her side.

"Clarke, are you alright?" Lexa asked walking out of the ark after Clarke.

Clarke nodded holding in a breath so she didn't have to deal with the pain associated with letting out a breath until she couldn't hold it in anymore and let the breath out. She groaned out in pain. "Maybe I got out of bed too early," Clarke admitted actually missing the nice feeling of no pain on the bed.

"No way, I am not taking you back to the infirmary after we spent all of that time convincing your mom, you were ready for this. Not only will I have gone back on my word but you will definitely be stuck in there for weeks, is that something you want?" Lexa asked knowing she was right about this one. She just spent the last week of Clarke complaining about sitting still for so long.

Clarke made an annoyed face, "No, I suppose I do not want to go back to staring at those boring walls."

"Exactly, besides, if we leave for Polis, you can lay in my bed all you want," Lexa admitted without thinking first. Once her mind caught up to what her mouth had said she turned back to Clarke with her mouth gaping open at what she had admitted so easily.

Clarke tilted her head smirking, "Really? I'm staying with you am I? I don't have a choice in this matter?" The pain in her side subsided as she watched Lexa scramble to find a response.

Lexa's mouth opened and shut a few times before she responded with, "Well, I mean…. You do not have to stay with me… You could… You could have your own room… I just… I just, I thought since you and I are…"

"Lexa relax," Clarke chuckled as she watched Lexa sweat over something so small. "I'm only kidding. I would love to stay with you. I wouldn't have it any other way. I got used to staying with you at the Marsh Clan. That is definitely something I miss about being stuck in the infirmary, is seeing you every time I wake up." Clarke smiled trying to get Lexa to relax. "Any idea when we might leave?"

"Everything is ready to go, Clarke. If you want to leave today, tomorrow, five days from now, now, we can go whenever you are ready to go. I had some of my warriors get the object onto a cart so it's ready to go whenever you are," Lexa advised knowing that there was a good chance that Clarke would want to leave as soon as possible.

"We could leave right now?" Clarke asked thinking this had to be a dream.

"Yes you can," Abby answered walking out of the ark just as Clarke had asked the question. "When Lexa informed me that Sierra would be going with the two of you, it became a no brainer. Plus I'm sure the almighty commander has to have her own healers if anything were to happen to you. I trust that Lexa will keep you safe Clarke, not that you can't take care of yourself," Abby added the last part in as she was incredibly impressed by the fact that Clarke was able to win in the challenge.

"Your mom is right, Clarke, I do have many healers, if something were to go wrong, you will be well taken care of," Lexa admitted even though she knew it wouldn't come to that. Even Clarke's eye wasn't that black anymore. She was definitely on the road to healing.

"What about my side, I'm not sure I could ride a horse with the bouncing and all," Clarke admitted not wanting to feel weak but feeling weak in that moment knowing that simple things like riding a horse would be hard.

"You can always ride in the cart. I can have Raven re-setup some kind of chair for you, if you would like," Lexa couldn't contain her smile knowing that it would be so satisfying to watch Clarke ride in the cart just like Clarke had made her do it leaving the Marsh clan.

Clarke chuckled, "As much as I would like to say no to that idea, I think it would be a better idea than riding on a horse. However, she doesn't need to set up a chair, just throw a bunch of pillows and padding on it that should be fine." She suggested wanting anything but to sit on that chair like Lexa did.

"Alright then, I will find Raven and get her on it right away," Lexa advised before turning and walking away to find Raven.

XXXXXXXXX

About two hours and lots of frustration later, Raven completed the new comfy area for Clarke to sit on during the trip to Polis.

Raven stood back to admire her work of art as Clarke walked over to see if it was complete.

"Ugh, what did you do?" Clarke asked looking at the mess of stuffing and pillows all jammed into the front half of the cart. "I don't think I need that much padding." She pointed out the excessive amount of padding.

"Clarke, I am going to ride with you, that way I can monitor the object. I figured I might as well add some for me too." Raven explained as she looked at her work. "Now, where is Lexa, are we going now?"

Clarke nodded, "Yes, we're going." She took a few steps to the left side of the cart so she could see past the cart to the front of the line, "Lexa, we're good to go." Clarke yelled hoping Lexa heard her. When she saw Lexa's head pop out from the front, she had known her message was heard. With some help from Raven and Abby, Clarke got up onto the cart and sat down in the very comfy padding.

"Clarke, do not push yourself, do you hear me? I do not want to hear that you were ripping out your stitches from doing activities that were too strenuous. Do you understand me?" Abby asked standing next to the cart.

Clarke nodded, "Yes mom, I will make sure to take it easy."

"Okay, also, I thought you might like these." Abby handed Clarke a book of white blank pages and a set of pencil crayons. "Be safe, I love you," Abby reached out and placed a hand on Clarke's shoulder.

Clarke took a look at the book and pencils Abby gave her, "Wow, mom, thank you. I love you too, I'll be back at some point," Clarke advised not knowing when she might leave Polis. It was Lexa's home and she didn't want to leave Lexa so chances were she'd be in Polis a while. She didn't want to give her mom a time just in case it was a longer than expected.

With that the cart was moving. Raven sitting next to Clarke, and Lexa, Octavia, Lincoln, Sierra and few other warriors were on horses.

A few others came out of the shadows to wave goodbye to Clarke, Raven and everyone else as they disappeared through the whole in the woods.

XXXXXXXXX

Hours pass by and finally they pass by a sign that says "No weapons beyond this point" indicating that they would be arriving at Polis any moment now.

Clarke and Raven turned their bodies to face more forward so that they wouldn't miss a thing. As they approached the city, it was clear where Lexa lived when a very large tower with a flame at the top came in to view. Both of them were at a loss for words, from the numerous vendors selling different things, to all of the grounders just going about their day. There was no need to fight here, and it was clear that that was true.

Clarke could see now why Lexa had said that Polis would change her view on the grounders. This place looked so peaceful. She couldn't wait to go exploring and really take it all of it in. She was so focused on looking at all of the colors and different food the grounders were selling that she hadn't even noticed that the cart had stopped moving and that Lexa was speaking to her at the end of the cart.

"Clarke?" Lexa asked for the third time and finally it seemed like Clarke had actually heard her. "Do you just want to stay in the cart?"

Clarke shook her head as she scooted her way to the end of the cart past the object, "Sorry, this place is just so beautiful. I can see why you wanted to bring me here so bad." As Clarke neared the edge, Lexa put out her hands to help support some of the force Clarke would experience from jumping from getting off the cart. As Clarke slid off the cart, she still felt pain but not as much as she had thought she would with Lexa there holding her. "Thank you," Clarke smiled at Lexa and was very tempted to kiss her because of their close proximity until Raven spoke.

"So, where do I set up?" Raven asked jumping off the cart and then pulling a huge bag off with her.

Clarke looked over surprised, "Where were you keeping that?"

"It was under the padding. Why do you think I looked so comfortable the entire way?" Raven stated what she thought was the obvious but was actually only obvious to her.

Lexa, still holding onto Clarke, looked to Raven, "For now, we will leave it here. I will have a couple of my warriors move it into the building of your choice as I would prefer it not be in the tower. If it were to explode, at least it could destroy a building of the old age rather than the commander tower."

Raven looked at the two of them a little unsure, "I'm going to be honest here. If that thing were to explode, I don't it would just take out the building." When she saw Lexa's expression turn to one of worry, Raven quickly added, "But don't worry, if it were going to explode, it should have by now. I haven't found any indication that it is or ever will explode." Raven tried to sound reassuring even though it sounded more like she was trying to convince herself more than them. Before they could answer, Raven walked off in a random direction not sure where she was going but knew that she needed to escape that conversation.

Lexa tried to move toward where Raven was going before Clarke pulled her back, "Just leave her. I trust Raven, if she says it won't explode then it won't. Raven is very familiar with explosives." The thought of Raven creating that bomb from fuel for the bridge came to mind when she thought about Raven and explosives. "Besides, you need to show me where I will be staying." Clarke tried to redirect Lexa's attention.

Lexa knew she'd be looking for Raven at another time but for now, Clarke was right, "Alright, I will show you where you will be staying."

Clarke pumped her fist triumphantly, "Yes. Let me just grab my stuff and we'll be good to go." Clarke didn't bring much as she didn't have much so she basically just grabbed what Abby had given her but she had grabbed a few shirts from in the ark. She still hadn't found her blue jacket so she had been wearing the jacket Lexa had given her. "Wait, what about everyone else?"

"Titus will probably show them where to go, do not worry Clarke," Lexa assured Clarke wanting this reveal to be just them and not a bunch of other people.

Once Lexa was sure Clarke had all of her things, she lead Clarke toward the tower.

"So since I would assume, you being the commander you probably live at the top, how do you get all the way up there?" Clarke asked as they came into the tower that looked like it should have crumbled when the bombs went off but somehow was still standing.

Lexa lead Clarke toward what was the elevator doors and walked in on the platform with Clarke following her. Seconds later, the elevator began going up which startled Clarke. "Do not be afraid Clarke; this lift is being controlled by warriors in the lower levels turning a wheel."

Clarke stood back up tall, "Wait, they turn a wheel to make the elevator go up and down?" Lexa nodded. "Wow that must be very tiring." She couldn't even imagine how many times they'd need to go around to get this to the top. On top of that, depending on the amount of people would make it harder. "Note to self, do not bring friends in here. What if this stopped working, is there another way up?"

"There is a ladder in the shaft that can be used as an alternative but it is rare that it is used so do not worry, Clarke," Lexa explained knowing that Clarke's first thought of having to take a ladder with her injuries would not be ideal.

As they reached the top, the doors opened and Lexa put her arm out allowing Clarke to exit first, then she exited the elevator and took a right. Once at the doors, Lexa opened both of them as she entered looking back to see Clarke's profound reaction.

Clarke was stuck in awe she could hardly get her feet moving to walk into the room. From the art easel in the corner, to the couches and chairs, to all of the candles and of course the bed. As Clarke eventually got into the room, she took in the intricate golden work on Lexa's bed. It was breathtaking. She could tell that it wore down over the years but couldn't help but see how much Lexa had made this room her own. There was a part of her that wondered if Lexa had an artist side she didn't know about or if the easel was in there solely for the purpose of Clarke to use it. She hadn't really shown her drawing abilities except for her Mount Weather map so if it was for her, she was shocked.

Lexa stood off to the side to let Clarke walk around the room enough to take in each and every detail before she broke the silence, "What do you think?"

Clarke turned back to Lexa still holding onto her bag, "It's so beautiful. This is YOUR room," she put emphasis on 'your' because she couldn't believe what she was seeing.

Lexa nodded, "Yes, passed down from commander to commander."

"I hope you changed the furs when you took over," Clarke stated as she thought about other people sleeping in this bed doing activities she'd like to do with Lexa without being disgusted.

"Of course Clarke," Lexa stated the obvious. "As I said before we left, if you are feeling tired, you can hang out in here as long as you would like, whenever you would like. What is mine is yours." Lexa added at the last minute hoping Clarke would see the love behind the gesture.

Clarke placed her stuff on the nearby chair feeling the hunger she'd been pushing down for over a week, "What do you say to us maybe taking advantage of being alone right now?" She smirked having one thought on her mind as she leaned into Lexa.

Lexa's mouth dropped open at the temptation of getting to see Clarke's naked body on her bed, "Uh… I really have other things…"

"Come on Lexa," Clarke whispered into Lexa's left ear causing what she felt was a shiver from Lexa.

Lexa felt her body being pulled toward the bed and for a second she was sure she was going to give in to Clarke but she knew she had things to attend to today that she couldn't put off. "Clarke," Lexa finally got control over her body just as Clarke's legs clearly hit the right side of the bed. "If I stay here with you, I will not want to leave this room."

"Sounds good to me," Clarke licked her lips as she could feel them getting dry from the heat in this moment.

"You are making this very hard," Lexa admitted not wanting to leave Clarke here but knowing she had duties to deal with.

"Then don't make this hard. Stay here with me and then you can go do whatever you need to do," Clarke leaned into Lexa's exposed neck and began leaving light kisses.

Lexa melted; she felt all of her resolve disappearing as Clarke continued her way up Lexa's brown skin. She was so engulfed in the feeling that she hadn't even noticed Clarke unbuckling some of the belts around her waist. As Clarke got through all of the belts, she wasted no time opening up the jacket and wrapping her right hand around Lexa's waist connecting with skin as she did. This was it, Lexa's resolve was gone as she pulled off her jacket tossing it on the ground somewhere and connecting her lips to Clarke's. Accidently, Lexa leaned too much into Clarke to deepen the kiss that Clarke fell back onto the bed bringing Lexa with her. Lexa stared down into ocean blue eyes for a few seconds before she leaned back down in to kiss Clarke once again.

They were so lost in the moment, that they hadn't even noticed that one of the doors weren't completely shut. It wasn't even remotely on either of their minds either as they continued to explore each other's body. Lexa took extra care this time around to ensure that she didn't cause Clarke to open any stitches in the process. Clarke knew she'd won this round and knew she'd make a point of mentioning it to Lexa afterward but for now she just wanted to be here in Lexa's presence for she had missed being this close to the commander.

You never truly know what you have until you don't have it anymore and Clarke realized in this moment that she had missed Lexa tremendously.


	27. Chapter 27

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Author's Note: For those of you that are existing readers, you are probably thinking, "wait a minute, the last chapter you posted was chapter 37, yet this is 27." Here's the thing, it finally occurred to me just how random the second part of this story was. It literally was this new story with new characters with Clarke and Lexa just kind of being there. So after a lot of thinking, I realized that I needed to change the story. A lot of people love this first half, because it's focused on Clarke/Lexa and while it mentions other characters the focus is on them. I have since come up with a more canon like world for this story. However, I felt that it would be better to make it more of a trilogy, rather than keeping it together. What was chapters 28-37 will still somewhat be the same, I am just going to be drastically changing them. I also changed the ending of this chapter to fit with being the ending of this story. The location of the war will be different, how they get involved will be different. Basically the whole concept will be different. Currently, I'm thinking it'll be set within the realm that is Season 4, however Lexa will be alive. We all know what happened in Season 3 so... how can this be.. I wonder. It will all be explained in the sequel.
> 
> "Quotations" = Characters speaking in English  
> "Italicized Quotations" = Characters speaking in Trigedasleng  
> Italics = Thought

Chapter 27

Raven stepped off the elevator and looked around trying to figure out which way Titus said to go. "Right, he said once off the lift to turn right." She nodded to herself and made her way to the right. As she approached a door, she noticed that it was partially closed; she waved it off as being left this way in a hurry. _It's a big grounder tower, it wouldn't be that surprising if they left things in a rush,_ she thought to herself as she nodded. She pushed the door open and was taking in the beauty of the room until she walked farther into the room and noticed two people making out in the bed. Then she realized these two weren't just making out, they were very much so naked, when her brain connected the dots on who was in the bed, instantly Raven turned away, "Omg! That was a sight I will never get out of my mind." She exclaimed surprised to witness them together. "Making out is one thing but having sex!" Her body shivered at the thought of having the image of someone she called her friend and their lover getting it on.

Lexa lying off to the right of Clarke so not to hurt Clarke's left side, immediately pulled up the sheet covering up Clarke and herself.

"What the hell, Raven?" Clarke yelled out thankful for Lexa's quick movements of covering them both up.

"Um… Titus said this was the room I would be staying in," Raven uttered completely turned around staring at the cement walls.

"Raven, you have gotten off on the wrong floor." Lexa indicated looking at Raven's back. "This is my floor. You are standing in my bedroom right now."

"You can turn around, Raven, we're decent enough now," Clarke suggested to Raven so that she could stop staring at the bed of Raven.

Raven shook her head, her ponytail moving from side to side, "No thanks, I'll just stand here like this. It is very possible I'm on the wrong floor as Titus didn't tell me how to operate the elevator. I just thought they knew where I was to be dropped off."

Lexa dropped her head onto the pillow to the right of Clarke's head annoyed that Titus didn't help Raven get to her room. She lifted her head back up moments later frustrated, "Go wait outside and I will get dressed to show you where you would be staying."

Raven nodded, "Phew… Okay, I'll be by the elevator." She spoke as she made her way out of the room in a rush. As she passed the door, she made a point to shut it so that no one else had to walk in on what she did.

Lexa looked back to Clarke in all her glory, "I am sorry, but I need to deal with this," she spoke as she caressed the left side of Clarke's face with the fingers that poked out of her cast. She leaned in and connected her lips with Clarke's again in a soft and sweet kiss. "I would do anything to just stay here with you but…"

"Raven needs help, I understand," Clarke completed Lexa's train of thought.

"Yes and once that's done I will need to deal with some things," Lexa expressed defeated as she still lay in bed with Clarke not wanting this moment to end.

Clarke nodded, "I understand. Besides, it's not like I'm going anywhere, we will have other moments here in Polis."

Lexa leaned in one more time to kiss Clarke before she reluctantly pulled away to get out of bed. As she found her clothing on the floor, she noticed Clarke laying there all exposed, "You know, you are not making this an easy decision," She felt her mouth begin to water at the sight in front of her as she pulled her pants back on after she pulled her tank top over her head.

"That's the point. I want you to know what you're missing out on by leaving," Clarke smirked as she watched Lexa's eyes move from blue eyes to Clarke's exposed top half of her body.

Lexa walked around the bed to find her jacket lying off to the opposite side of the bed. As she got her arms into the sleeves, she thought she'd be free of Clarke's teasing but alas that was not the case as she had turned over and lied on her back because of her left side being in pain. This time, she pulled the sheet down even further; Lexa's movements froze on the last few buckles on her jacket. Her mouth fell open as she tried to shake her head from the thoughts popping in her mind. "I … Really do… Need to be…" She stumbled over her words.

Clarke sat up on the bed, letting what was left of the sheets fall off her body before she stepped onto the cold cement in all her glory, and walked around the bed to a very quiet commander. She reached for the last few remaining buckles and helped buckle them up, "I know that you have things you need to do. Helping Raven and then your commander stuff…" Clarke looked up into green eyes once she was sure she had gotten the last buckle, "I wanted you to have a visual to keep you wishing you'd stayed with me," Clarke couldn't help but to smirk at Lexa again.

"You do things to me Clarke that I never thought I would feel again… I want to kiss you but if I do I will never leave this room again…" Lexa admitted her weakness so easily biting her bottom lip to prevent her from taking Clarke right now. Her hands were mere centimeters from Clarke's body knowing that if she touched, she would pull Clarke close.

Clarke's smirk grew as she leaned in to Lexa's left ear, her body pressing against Lexa's, "Hurry back," she whispered before she pulled away to get back into the bed.

Lexa let go of a breath she wasn't aware she was holding in, "Clarke… My – uh – My meetings can take… quite some time. If you would like to explore the area - I will find you."

"Maybe I will do that or maybe I will take advantage and have nap to replenish my energy for later," Clarke indicated trying to make Lexa as uncomfortable as possible.

"Okay…" Lexa whispered unsure if she even said anything to begin with as she turned and picked up her shoulder guard and golden wheel before walking out of the room.

As soon as Lexa exited the room and shut the door, she leaned back against the door as she placed the wheel back between her eyebrows. She took a few breaths to steady herself. Once she was sure she could actually use her brain in a constructive way, she moved away from the door and left toward the elevator where Raven would be.

XXXXXXXXXX

It took a few tries for Raven to successfully operate the elevator but eventually Lexa was confident that Raven would be able to get around this place easier.

As Lexa and Raven were going back up the elevator to the correct floor this time, Raven stated, "Clarke really cares about you." Raven glanced over to Lexa who looked at her confused.

"I care about her too," Lexa answered not sure where Raven was taking this conversation.

"I just want you to know that even though I know you could kick my ass in a fight… If you ever hurt her, I will find a way to hurt you. Whether that is physically or emotionally, I will find a way." Raven looked to Lexa with fire in her eyes to prove that she meant business.

Lexa could sense that Raven was being serious in this moment, "I believe you, Raven, but unless there are circumstances that I cannot get around, I have no intention of hurting Clarke any time soon. I love her and would do anything for her." She admitted with confidence. Lexa knew she needed to make sure Raven understood that she wasn't in this relationship for any ulterior motives.

Raven was about to speak when the door opened to reveal Titus.

"Commander, your presence is required," Titus advised very vaguely looking from Lexa to Raven. "Raven, I instructed warriors to bring up your belongings. They have put them in your room. I was surprised not to find you in the room."

"Yeah, I got off on the wrong floor," Raven admitted stepping off the elevator and walking past Titus in the direction that Titus told her to go originally.

Lexa waited for Titus to step onto the elevator. As soon as the doors shut, Lexa spoke, "You were to show her how to get to her room." She stated as she stared at the elevator doors.

"Commander, I told her to wait for me, she must not have heard me," Titus tried to defend his side but it was clear that Lexa wasn't buying it.

"Do not let this happen again," Lexa spoke just as the doors to the elevator opened once again on the top floor. So much did she want to go right and head back to Clarke but instead she turned left to head to the throne room. With ease, she placed the shoulder guard and sash back onto her left shoulder, snapping the buckle shut.

Titus walked in first, _"Rise for your Commander,"_ His voice boomed in Trigedasleng.

Just as he reached the throne room chair, Lexa emerged from the doors and walked down the red carpet to her chair. She walked up the few steps to the chair and as she turned around, the room dropped down to one knee and bowed to her. She took a moment to look upon her subjects, before sitting down and everyone else, minus Titus, falling in line and sitting on their respectful chairs as well.

" _From what our scouts have determined, the mountain men died several days ago, so why is that you have only just returned to Polis?"_ The Azgeda man questioned Lexa's motives.

" _I needed to ensure that Wanheda stayed alive, not that I need to explain my motives to any of you."_ Lexa spoke back in Trigedasleng.

The Azgeda man looked at the other clan ambassadors and could see the same look of confusion on their faces, he turned back to face Lexa, _"Is that why you have brought Wanheda here? To take her power for yourself,"_ He questioned Lexa not quite sure what her answer was going to be as she had been acting very unlike herself ever since she met Wanheda.

" _Wanheda, is here as my guest, nothing more. Now let us move onto more pressing things, like-"_

" _No, Wanheda has been nothing but a pain for us ever since she landed on the ground and now that you finally have her right in your grasps, you do nothing,"_ The Azgeda man continued to question Lexa and didn't care one bit what might happen if he pushed her too far.

Titus took a few steps forward, _"You will not question your commander."_

" _Titus, you cannot be for this."_ He looked at Titus to see if he would give him anything. When he didn't budge, the Azgeda man continued, _"You are well aware of the amount of warriors we have sent and lost because of Wanheda and her people."_ The Azgeda man turned from Titus back to Lexa, _"She deserves death yet she is here among our people, in our capital, I cannot say what I would do if I came across her in the streets-"_

" _That is enough!"_ Lexa stood from her chair abruptly. _"She is a guest here in Polis. You will accept that otherwise, I will kill you with my own hands. Are we clear?"_ She stared him down with fire in her eyes. There was nothing in this world that would take Clarke from her and Lexa was going to make sure that this man didn't get a chance to try.

As the question came from Lexa's voice, he knew she was pissed for she never confirmed that they knew what she was saying. She just gave out commands and either they understood or they died. It was as simple as that. For her to question, meant she was not to be crossed with any further. _"I am sorry Commander, I did not mean to question you,"_ the Azgeda man sat back down on his chair before Lexa got any ideas on how to kill him.

Lexa looked around the room and when she was sure that no one else was going to get up and question her motives, she sat back down on her chair, _"Now where were we?"_ She asked to no one in particularly.

" _What is that object that you brought back with you?"_ A woman from the desert clan asked.

" _Raven kom Skaikru has been working around the clock trying to determine that. All we know is that it fell from the sky."_ Lexa answered the question but as soon as the words left her mouth she realized she made an error saying the last part as the room erupted with questions and accusations.

Titus acted quickly as his voiced boomed in the room, _"Enough!"_

Lexa turned to Titus and nodded to thank him for his quick actions, _"This is not a Skaikru weapon. They have informed me that they do not know what it is either."_

" _That does not mean anything. They could be lying!"_ A man yelled out starting to see what Queen Nia was trying to convince them all of.

" _You are letting your emotions cloud your judgement Commander!"_

Lexa noticed quite quickly that this remark came from the Azgeda man that was questioning her moments ago. It was clear from the smirk on his face.

" _I have an alliance with them; they have no reason to lie to me. They know that we could wipe them from this Earth if need be. If they say they do not know what it is, then they do not."_ Lexa defended the sky people, something she would not have done about a month ago.

" _An alliance that no longer exists because our enemy is dead,"_ the Azgeda man pointed out the obvious. _"They are back to being just our enemies, nothing more."_

As the point came out, everyone looked to Lexa for confirmation of this. Lexa's face didn't give anything away, _"Do not forget that without the Skaikru, our people would still be hunted and turned into monsters. You may not like them for the fact that they have killed hundreds of our people but without them, we would not be free. Our greatest enemy is dead. That is their doing. We may have helped them achieve the goal but the plan did not come from me, or any of you, it came from them."_ She made a point to look at each and every one of the ambassadors to get her point across. _"The alliance may not be needed anymore but it is far from being gone. One of the things we need to discuss here today is a treaty between our people and their people."_

Where Lexa expected uproar from her comment, she got none. The ambassadors just looked around at each other realizing that Lexa was right. They would not be here in this moment without the sky people. It was becoming quite clear that without this new enemy at their side, they would not have accomplished winning a war they had been fighting all of their lives. The mountain men and their terror were gone.

When Lexa was sure she was going to get no response, she continued, "Now let us begin…"

XXXXXXXXXXXX

Hours flew by before Lexa was able to get out of the throne room. They had eventually come up with terms to the treaty between Skaikru and the twelve clans but it took a lot of fighting and once it was all over, all Lexa wanted was to spend some time with Clarke.

She made her way to her room with the intention to get changed and then go find Clarke somewhere on the grounds. She entered the room and made her way right to the bed, falling right onto the furs covering the bed, her face and body hitting the furs in a huff. All she wanted was a moment of peace and then she'd go look for Clarke.

"The meeting was that bad?"

Lexa lifted her head in confusion, pushing her body up onto her arms so she could see over the golden bed frame to the voice on the couch. It was Clarke. "Clarke? What are you still doing here?"

"Well, I was going to leave but then I thought about the ark and how if you could have seen it, I would have wanted to be the one to show you it. So I thought maybe you would feel the same and would want to show me your home." Clarke explained her reasoning from her comfy spot on the couch. She was sitting at the far end of the couch facing Lexa on the bed, her legs pushed up to her body so to create a surface for her drawing book.

Lexa pushed herself up from the bed back onto her feet. She unbuckled the armor and sash from her shoulder and placed it on the rack against the wall next to her bed before making her way over to Clarke.

Clarke placed her drawing book and pencils on the chair next to the couch as she scooted closer to the edge of the couch and forward so that she was lying more than sitting, dropping her legs to make room for Lexa.

Lexa understood what Clarke was doing and laid down sideways on her right side between Clarke and the couch. With some maneuvering, Lexa got comfortable with her right arm in the cast resting against her own body and partially on top of Clarke's and wrapping her left arm around Clarke's body. "It is so good to be back here, with you." Lexa snuggled her head on Clarke's left shoulder.

"Your commander duties didn't go like you hoped they would?" Clarke asked running her fingers along Lexa's left arm.

Lexa shook her head, "They did eventually but it took a lot of energy and effort to get there."

"If you need to talk, you know I'm here for you right?" Clarke asked seeing the distress on Lexa's face but not wanting to push the topic.

Lexa nodded as she took in a deep breath and let go of it, feeling some of the anxiety she had gained from arguing with the other ambassador's escape her body. That and lying with Clarke, made her feel ten times better which is why she thought finding Clarke would be far more helpful than going to the training grounds and taking her frustrations out there.

"I do know that Clarke, but just being here in your presence is enough to make me feel better," Lexa gave a weak smile.

Clarke chuckled, "Well your face isn't doing a very good job of proving that to me but I will take your word for it."

Several moments pass of them just being in each other's presence, absorbing the feelings they both give to each other. Lately it had been rare for them to just sit back and be together and take in the warmth, love and even comfort that they got being there together. It was something they hadn't been able to take in until now. Their lives had been filled with so much pain and hurt as of lately, from Clarke being challenged to the both of them falling off a cliff into a raging river, they were rarely given moments of peace.

Lexa opened her eyes after what she thought was only minutes of just sitting with Clarke, "Clarke, we should get up, otherwise I am going to fall asleep right here." Then she noticed the drawing on Clarke's drawing book. "Is that me?"

Clarke looked down at Lexa and back to the paper lying against her legs and all of a sudden felt a tinge of warmth on her cheeks of embarrassment that it might not be very good. "Well you've been asleep for a good hour, and finally I got some inspiration to draw so I thought why not you." Hesitantly she asked, "Do you like it?"

Lexa used her left hand to wipe her eyes so she could look at it clearer. She looked upon the drawing and she felt as though she was looking into a mirror, "You are really talented, Clarke."

Clarke couldn't help the smile that appeared on her face, "You think so?" She looked at her drawing and could see some faults from her trying to capture Lexa's face while Lexa was lying on her but it looked like Lexa liked it from the look on her face.

Lexa attempted to use her right elbow to get up on her butt but it was clearly failing but Clarke caught on quick and helped Lexa to sit back up. "Thank you," she thanked Clarke for the assistance.

Clarke smiled, "You're welcome."

Lexa reached out for the drawing in Clarke's hand to look at it better, "I cannot believe the level of detail. It looks like I am looking at myself."

"Thank you," Clarke's smile grew.

Lexa looked to Clarke for a moment before it seemed like something had caught her attention as she looked toward a nearby window. Her eyes slowly shut as she breathed in; feeling what she normally felt this time of year. In a quiet voice she whispered to herself, "It is time."

Clarke looked at Lexa's confused, "Time for what."

Lexa stood up from the couch abruptly, "Grab your jacket, I need to show you something." She placed the piece of paper back on the couch.

"Okay…" Clarke was confused. How could such a sweet moment turn to this so quick? She picked up the picture and put it into her book so it didn't get crinkled and then got up and moved to the coat rack and grabbed her jacket. "Where are we going?"

Lexa smiled wide, "Follow me."

With that they left the room, went down the elevator and left the tower on foot. Lexa was determined to find the perfect location for Clarke to witness this moment. It was going to happen any moment now. She sped up their pace to get them to the training grounds, a location that would show off Polis and give Clarke the chance to really experience what was about to happen.

Just as Clarke and Lexa arrived in the training area, the little water pit frozen over, Lexa looked to the sky as she closed her eyes, feeling the cool air around her. "It is going to happen any moment, I can just feel it" She spoke aloud again not caring that Clarke wouldn't understand her.

"Lexa, why are we here?" Clarke asked the obvious question.

Lexa opened her eyes again and looked right at Clarke with a smile, "Look…" She looked back up into the sky.

Clarke didn't understand what was happening but she trusted that Lexa knew what she was doing so she looked up at the sky and as she did something light and fluffy landed on her nose. It startled her a little at first as the fluffy white thing melted and a trail of water fell down her nose. She looked to Lexa who had the biggest smiled Clarke had ever seen on Lexa's face staring up into the white sky as white fluffy particles landed on her, some of them sticking to her black clothing and some of them melting on her face. Then it occurred to Clarke was she was looking at, "Snow…"

Lexa's turned her attention to Clarke, her hair getting full of soft snow, "Yes, snow. I was hoping you were here for the first snowfall. This is one of my favorite places for the first snowfall."

"Why is that?" Clarke asked not seeing the significance of why this area would be any different than any other place.

Lexa guided Clarke over to where the frozen pit of water was and just pointed out toward the tower. She let the sight in front of them do all of the talking for her.

Clarke's mouth dropped open in awe at the sight in front of her. She could clearly see the white fluff falling onto the buildings and a few people stopping in their tracks to take in the first snowfall. "This is beautiful," Clarke let out in barely a whisper.

"Yeah it is," Lexa responded even though she knew Clarke didn't think anyone heard her.

Clarke turned to Lexa, pulling the commander's look back to her, "Thank you for bringing me here."

Lexa turned her whole being to look into blue eyes, "You are welcome Clarke." She spoke as she used her left hand to move some blonde locks from her face and leaned in and connected her lips with Clarke's. She wanted to relish in this moment and imprint it to memory for even though she hoped they could experience more moments like these, she did not dare think past today. For living on the ground brought dangers that neither one of them could ever predict and thinking too far into the future could be disastrous.

They let this moment take them over, the snow slowly coating their jackets and melting on their skin. The heat of the moment kept the cold away as their lips danced together as one.

XXXXXXXXX

Lexa pulled back from the kiss and looked into blue eyes, "What do you think?" She had to know once again how much Clarke enjoyed this moment.

"I love it. How did you even know?" Clarke questioned wanting to know how Lexa knew just when it was going to snow.

Lexa shrugged, "It is a gift I have had since I was young girl. I have always been able to predict moments before it was about to snow for the first time. There is just something in the air that I can sense. Day or night, I get this feeling."

"You are full of so many surprises," Clarke looked upon Lexa with awe. "Of all the seasons I was most curious about, this one I was most curious about and it has surpassed anything I could have imagined it to be. Thank you again."

Lexa leaned down and scooped up some snow with both hands and used her cast to pat down the ball in her left hand. Once she was mostly satisfied with her creation, she threw it at Clarke.

Clarke jumped surprised to get hit with a snowball, "Hey. I'm trying to enjoy this moment." She leaned down and picked up her own snowball, patting it down until it was firm enough and threw it at Lexa. Clarke's aim a little too good as it hit the middle of Lexa's chest, the snow falling down the middle of her jacket.

Lexa jumped at the cold contact of snow against her bare skin before she quickly tried to catch some of it before it went too far down her jacket. She grabbed pieces and tossed them back at Clarke. As she got most of the pieces, she realized she wasn't going to be able to catch all of the pieces as she felt them move down her jacket, under her tank top creating an icy trail down her body.

"Oh… Did I get you good?" Clarke looked at Lexa trying to look innocent but failing miserably.

"I would say so," Lexa stated as she picked up some more snow and launched at Clarke trying to get her as wet as possible. Unfortunately Clarke's jacket was done up better than Lexa's so she couldn't get her from the front but Lexa saw her opportunity when she pulled back the back of Clarke's jacket and dumped her handful back there. Well most of her handful as Clarke was struggling.

Clarke jumped up and down trying to get the snow out but failing as she felt the snow slip down her jacket soaking her shirt and some of it slipping under the shirt. She could feel the ice creating a trail down her back, the icy cold feel like an ice cube on your hand but running down her back. "I am going to get you back," Clarke looked to Lexa with a fire.

Lexa smiled, "Only if you can catch me." With that, Lexa was gone off toward the tower with the intention to run a hot bath to warm up from the snow going down her jacket and maybe get Clarke in that bath as well.

Clarke picked up some snow before she ran off after Lexa, throwing it as she ran. Her aim still pretty good even while running, as she watched Lexa dodge the snowballs as she ran through the streets of Polis.

As Lexa neared the tower, she spotted a nice patch of ice that would surely stop Clarke in her tracks. With quick reflexes, Lexa jumped hoping she'd cleared the ice patch. That is when she landed. It wasn't solid ground, no it was more ice. She felt her boots slip on the ice, her feet launching out in front of her, landing right on her back.

For Clarke, it was like watching in slow motion as Lexa fell to the ground, her back colliding with the ground, her head also hitting the ground in the process. All the fun in the moment, left her as she ran over, being careful of the ice and sliding down on the ground to see if Lexa was alright. In the distance, she could hear heavy footsteps running towards them and because she didn't know the status of Lexa, she let them continue.

As she came up on Lexa, she saw her eyes shut, "Lexa, oh my god, are you okay?"

Lexa let out a smile as she opened her eyes, slowly she sat up on her butt, "Yes Clarke, just a little fall. I have had worse." She noticed her warriors running towards them in the distance, she put up her left hand to indicate she was fine. They nodded in understanding and turned around to go back.

"What were you thinking?" Clarke asked still a little worried that Lexa injured herself.

"I was thinking that I could have cleared this patch and watched you fall," Lexa chuckled to herself as she watched Clarke's face of worry turn to one of annoyance.

"Of all the things that we've been through, from the ground shaking, to me having to fight Cyrus to me almost dying, you wanted to try your luck once more and see if there was a possibility that we could survive this too?" Clarke looked to Lexa trying to gage a reaction from her.

"Clarke, that is what being on the ground is like. Living one moment, one minute, as if it could be our last. So you can bet that if I see something that could make our life just a little bit more interesting, or more fun, regardless of what it is, you can bet that I will do it." Lexa stated as she carefully pulled herself up onto her feet, helping Clarke after she did. "This is our land. This is our time to live this world together, and yes while loving you has been quite the bloody adventure, I wouldn't trade it for the world."

"Ha, bloody adventure, now that's accurate. I've had my fair share of injuries since being on the ground but almost dying at Cyrus' hand was a whole other thing. I'm just glad that I had you by my side." Clarke looked up into Lexa's green eyes as she took a step forward, she felt her foot slip.

Lexa reached out and held Clarke closer trying to prevent her from falling, however the force was too much pulling her down with Clarke falling on top of her. "Oh no."

Clarke burst out into laughter, watching Lexa do the same. "Seriously, we just can't win."

Lexa shook her head, "It seems not. Should we maybe crawl off this patch and then head inside?"

"First," Clarke pulled Lexa down to her connecting their lips in a brief kiss. "Okay, now let's go."

Lexa rolled off of Clarke and then with Clarke the two of them crawled off of the patch of ice it turned out to be a rather large patch of ice.

As soon as they were off the ice, a nearby grounder boy walked over to Lexa, " _Commander..."_

Lexa turned to boy and nodded for him to go ahead.

 _"Why were you laying on our ice rink used for skating?"_ The boy looked at her with curious eyes.

Lexa looked back at the 'ice patch' and noticed some other kids playing on it. She turned to the boy and answered with some excuse about checking it for slipperiness before turning back to Clarke.

Clarke shook her head holding back laughter behind tight lips, "Ice patch, huh?"

"In my defense, I was not aware of where we were at this very moment. Otherwise, I would have ran around it," Lexa came up with yet another excuse for why she thought she could clear the ice patch.

"Sure, yeah, I believe you." Clarke started walking away towards the tower. "How about we go warm up, shall we? I'll race you." With that Clarke was gone.

"Uh... Clarke, you cannot just say you will race me and then start without me." Lexa shouted as she jumped back into a run trying to catch up to Clarke.

"What happened to living every moment like it was our last?" Clarke yelled back.

Lexa smiled as she chased after Clarke. She knew that no matter what this world could throw at them, they would be alright. That no matter what happened, who came into their lives, they would tackle it together.

**THE END**

Stay tuned for the second part of this story called "Stronger Together".


End file.
